I agree with Johnsonsbaby. Tobes - you seem to think the rest of the world is rosy and the system runs like the UK where vast amounts of money are pumped into the system. There are clubs that simply cannot afford to take on youngsters and fund their development, hence why they rely on TPO. Your counter would be a good youngster will be snapped up by the bigger clubs regardless - how many youngsters can these big clubs take? I'm sure they are hundreds of talented youngsters but only a handful of rich clubs in South America - do they have enough space in their academies to take on all of these youngsters? In addition, even if a youngster gets taken on by a club, some of them will still need to pay for travel, football boots, contribute towards development costs - again, I'm referring back to the South American clubs that can't afford to pay for everything. And again, you assume that these clubs are like the English clubs that will pay for everything.
Clubs can't fund a youngster? Behave. The reason TPO's are becoming more popular is down to clubs need to raise capital that they can't obtain from financial institutions. Porto being a great example of it. They're obtaining funding via the back door & also under the radar of FFP. By doing this they're ignoring the flaws in their business model & merely plugging a gap, it's not going to provide a long term solution. TPO is about creating profit for the investors of the companies concerned, the drive to increase returns will be constant & the potential for conflicts of interest to arise is huge. I've not read anything on the subject of TPO that convinces me that it's of any tangible benefit to the game, the only positive comments around the practice are from those who's noses are firmly planted in the trough.
I'm not disputing that TPO are motivated by money. But you seem to think that clubs around the world has vast amounts of money pumped into them to fund expensive academies. These clubs have just about enough money to operate a first team let alone academies. TPO's can get ugly when the agency sell a % of the players rights, and that is something I don't agree with.
I don't know if TPO is becoming 'more popular' but it's becoming more regulated as Argentina, Venezuela and Uruguay are seeking to change the practice by bringing in new laws. The system took hold in S America after the Bosman ruling where agents saw a gap in the market. Poor kids from poor areas were financed in the hope that one or many of them would be the next big thing. Could you imagine the average British youngster not being able to afford a pair of boots - it just doesn't happen here. S America is a different story. Clubs also welcomed the subsidy TPO's could provide in getting players to sign who they couldn't otherwise afford. I am against the practice in this country but willing to open my mind to the possibility that it can work in poorer countries that need the cash injections to sustain the sport.
I think if you read up on stuff, like this particular subject, you find out all kinds of things you didn't know. Children are playing bare foot in these poor countries and talented youngsters and their families are keen on a hand-up to try and escape the poverty trap. Alternatively you could say it's exploitation, but for the families involved, they must be prepared to take the risk of bettering their lives. If the price they pay is lining the pockets of the agents, surely that's for them to weigh up in their decision making. Yes it would be nice it was true benevolence - but it's business and most businesses are run for profit, football is no different, whether it's right or not, is another matter.
No, I'm saying that poverty is totally irrelevant to the TPO issue, it a total red herring & I've no idea why it's been mentioned in this context
Fair enough - please continue to live in your protective bubble that everyone is rich and doesn't need such arrangements to develop their career and lives. Are you a politician perchance?
lol. I suppose in your World these philanthropic player 'investors' are scouring the favelas for bare footed football talent, then buying them boots, to give them a start in life Rather than merely buying a chunk of lads 'equity' in academies for peanuts. Politician? not a chance, I'm a businessman.
