Arsenal CEO Ivan Gazidis said that players "are losing out financially due to excessive fees paid to agents," and football "must address this," according to Tim Hanlon of REUTERS. Gazidis: "Most clubs pay to the limit when they buy a player and so wherever this money goes it will still be the case of paying to the limit. If I was a player or a players' union this would concern me. Players should make more money as the money paid to the agents should be going to them" (REUTERS, 3/4). The PA's Martyn Ziegler noted Gazidis "highlighted what he termed the 'invidious' involvement of some agents in transfer dealings and believes players should be taking more money themselves from the deals, rather than it going to agents." Gazidis "did not spell out specific conflicts of interest," but these could include "agents working for both players and clubs, or working for both a manager and a player at the same club." Research by the ECA has flagged up that 14.6% of all money paid in transfers ended up going to agents. Gazidis: "Clearly there's a lot of money going to agents and we, as clubs, are part of the problem but there are some unusual pressures in the system particularly when you are dealing across jurisdictions, that means agents have a significant degree of leverage" (PA, 3/4).
