Jay Z’s Roc Nation Sports is looking to hire veteran sports agents as well as buy their agencies, sources said.
“We are actively interviewing agents,” Michael Yormark, Roc Nation president and chief of branding and strategy, confirmed in an interview last week. “We are looking at potential acquisitions to grow our agency and to continue to build out our infrastructure as aggressively as we can. That process has started in the last 30 days, and hopefully we will have some announcements in the near future.”
Yormark would not identify the agents or agencies, but said there’s a possibility that deals could be announced by year end.
Any agents who are hired would report to Juan Perez, Roc Nation Sports president. Yormark and Perez have been conducting the interviews and negotiations with agents.
NFL, NBA and MLB agents are said to be the main focus of the talks, but Roc Nation Sports is eyeing soccer and tennis agents, as well.
Roc Nation Sports is interested in hiring or acquiring the businesses of experienced, veteran agents with client rosters already in place. They are also interested in agents with a track record of recruiting star talent and negotiating contracts, sources said.
In addition to adding agents, the company is looking to expand its business of promoting boxing, Yormark confirmed. Roc Nation launched that business, which does not represent boxers but promotes fights, in August, when it hired veteran boxing executive David Itskowitch as chief operating officer of boxing.
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Ndamukong Suh is among Roc Nation’s athlete clients.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
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Thus far, Roc Nation has built its sports agency mainly through organic growth. Launched in April 2013 through a partnership with CAA Sports, Roc Nation music executives Perez and vice president Rich Kleiman, as well as chairman and founder Jay Z, have crossed over to sports.
Roc Nation thus far counts 10 athlete clients: NBA players Kevin Durant and James Young; MLB players Robinson Cano, CC Sabathia and Rusney Castillo; NFL players Geno Smith, Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz and Ndamukong Suh; and WNBA player Skylar Diggins. Some of these clients are represented by Roc Nation in partnership with CAA Sports.
Top Roc Nation executives including Jay Z, Perez and Kleiman are certified to represent players in NBA and MLB contract talks with clubs by the unions in those sports. Roc Nation’s Kim Miale is certified by the NFL Players Association to represent players in talks with NFL clubs.
The NFLPA requires agents to take and pass a test, which is given once a year, in order for agents to become certified to negotiate NFL player deals with clubs. Perez and Kleiman had been scheduled to take the NFLPA test in July to become certified agents but did not. Roc Nation agent Wajid Syed did take the test, although the results are not yet known.
Roc Nation Sports does not represent any soccer or tennis players.
Roc Nation and Roc Nation Sports are based in midtown Manhattan, but sources said that agents they hire or acquire would not necessarily need to be located in New York or move to New York. Roc Nation already has offices in Los Angeles and London.
Hiring experienced agents with a track record of success in their respective sports could greatly accelerate the growth of Roc Nation Sports.
Roc Nation spokesman Ron Berkowitz has previously told SportsBusiness Journal that the sports division has turned down many athletes who want to be represented by the agency, as well as many agents who want to work there.
But Roc Nation Sports’ move to add agents through hires or acquisitions comes as the industry is going through a period of consolidation. Many rival sports and entertainment agencies are in the process of growing through acquisitions and strategic hires, which makes it potentially expensive to bring on an experienced sports agent.
