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IT’S BEEN 18 years since Oscar-winning movie Jerry Maguire threw the spotlight on the world of sports management.
Since then, the industry has exploded exponentially with sports agents holding vast influence and, despite industry accreditation systems attempting to control the profession, morally-challenged Maguire types still exist.
He says its time sports agents were held accountable to a higher authority and he has suggested federal legislation with a uniform set of regulations for all sports agents and a register of all those operating under the scheme.
“These guys play a pretty powerful position as an agent, they have significant influence.”
"In the world of a sports agent, very little happens. It cannot be stressed enough that a legal relationship is created when an athlete engages a sports agent to act in his or her best interest with a third party.
Fuller says different sports have different accreditation schemes with varying standards of competency and accountability.
“What might constitute a breach of a code of conduct in one sport may not even qualify as a slap on the wrist in another.”
“The government should be looking at implementing a national uniform scheme requiring all sports and professional leagues to become an active participant. If it takes tough love from the government and funding threats are part of it, so be it. This is essentially what happened with the implementation of the WADA Code and drugs in sport.”
“The agents need to be aware of their responsibilities under the law in dealing with minors. Whilst there are accreditation differences across respective sports, the law when dealing with minors is essentially the same for all jurisdictions across the nation,” he says.
“It is time to bring this profession out of the dark shadows and compel sports agents to play by the same rules.”
Fuller says athletes under the legislation should be provided with a statutory right to sue their agents for breaches of any sport agent specific legislation.
"We expect quality performance from our athletes on the field; it’s time to raise the standards set for those who play an instrumental role in their careers," he says.
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