There are no specific requirements to become a sports agent, (other than having an athlete as a client), however in recent years a number of states have started requiring sports agents to register and similarly the NCAA has imposed some restrictions on agents and what they can do. That said, most sports agents are lawyers and have some financial background, as ultimately, law and business are two of the most important aspects of a sports agents duties and they are the two parts of the job that are the easiest to mess up. If you do become a sports agent and you are not a lawyer - get a lawyer on your team immediately, before your client signs a contract.

A sports agent's primary function is to negotiate contracts for the athlete and as such must be intimately familiar with the typical terms for such contracts and the status of Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) for the particular athletes sport and organization. The CBAs change every few years so the agent has to stay very informed. Agents however, do more than handle contracts and promote the athlete. An agent is the athlete's advocate in a special position of trust with the duty of protecting the athletes present and future interests, including life after sports. We have all probably heard the joke about the meaning of the acronym NFL as "Not for Long." The agent has to consider this when the athlete does not and thus help prepare a financial plan and perhaps second career for the athlete for life after sports. I think an agent should consider educating their client as a primary responsibility, in addition to the primary responsibilities of negotiating individual and collective contracts for the athlete. Education should include:

• media issues and how to deal with media


• the business of being an athlete, including non-sports activities that leverage the athletes sports career (endorsements, speaking engagements, community events, charities etc.)


• financial training on investments and handling money responsibly (retirement, not making bad investment decisions or loaning money to the wrong people)



An agent has to protect his or her client in every way possible while keeping that client informed, educated and in the loop.