Players' desperation to sign a professional contract alone is a problem

Pontsho Madumo, a 37 year old born and bred in Hammanskraal, Gauteng. He's the founder of Cream Sports Management (CSM), where he is the intermediary/scout and manages players. Cream Sports Management is a full consultancy company founded in 2016 and its core business is to manage and represent professional football players. Like in any other company there are some challenges that founders experience before getting everything right, Madumo shares some of the major challenges that he has experienced with building CSM - "I've encountered some financial crisis like any other company and that made it difficult for us to travel to different places just to find clients (players),having to deal with players that don’t understand the role of an agent in their lives and breaking barriers into the market as a new and unknown agent, that on its own was huge huddle especially when coming to making deals with teams regarding players as they were unsure of my work and the talent I was bringing to them" he said. While to some it might not be known, but scouts have a criteria of selecting players that they want to represent, CSM looks for hard-working players, "you have to work hard as a player, it’s not easy being on the pitch, so one has to give it their all so that their work speak for itself. As agents when we go out and scout players, we already know the kind of players we want to work with, so we spot that by seeing how players showcase their talents on the pitch before we can recommend them to any team" he adds. Most players think that agents are in the business just to look out for their own benefits and interests hence they become sceptical about having an agent to represent them, Pontsho was asked what is different about CSM and why should players choose to be represented by CSM instead of other consultancy companies or agents, his response was: "CSM teaches and puts emphasis on social consciousness and financial awareness, moreover it looks after your well-being and sets you up even for life after football. We encourage players to invest in their education as part of a long term plan of sustaining themselves, we give all our attention to our clients which makes them comfortable when they face challenges basically we offer tailor made services, we are open and transparent to our clients in everything that we do especially when it comes to making decisions that concerns them and their future". In response to the question of what are the most common mistakes that players do with regards to contractual agreements that might cause dispute in the long run, Madumo said "first of all players' desperation to signing a contract alone is a problem, they rush to sign without the knowledge and concern of their agents, they sign with other agents without their primary agent knowing and also signing with teams in the absence of their agent is where most contractual dispute arise. I would advise players that before they get into a contractual agreement with any agent, players should firstly look at the agents credentials , their profiles, their work record and history of that particular agent to save themselves from alot of disputes in the long run." Pontsho could have started his own team and have players he's recruited to sign under his team, when asked why become an agent instead of a coach or team manager, he replied to say "being an agent gives one an opportunity to form relationships with different role players within the football space, this also helps in changing the lives of the footballers as well as those of their families. This also gives ones the chance to explore more talent in different areas, especially in the rural areas where the potential is hardly seen and goes unnoticed." To anyone who wants to become an agent and have their own company that specializes in consulting and player management, his advise is "first of all building contacts and relationship with different teams and people within the football industry is very important, while in the field it is very important to have a unique strategy. As CSM we are more specialized in working with the under 23/ scouting amateur players as there is a shortage of under 23 players (under 23 rules used in GAC and MDC), we maintain this by having a good relationship with our clients and teams as well as providing teams with good football players. So it's important to have your own distinct strategy and target market to avoid you moving from pillar to post without having an identity for your business." To reach out to Cream Sports Management find them on the contact details below: Facebook- Creamsportsmanagement Website- Www.creamsportsmanagement.co.za E-mail- creamsportsmanagement@gmail.coma76