Having managed some of the biggest stars in football, including Diego Maradona, Jon Smith is one of the most influential agents in the world. He is credited with football’s huge commercial success, pioneering product placement in the game as well as the England team brand. He is also responsible for bringing the Premier League to 180 countries, one fifth of the world’s population.
In the clip below, Jon shares some of the secrets from the world of football and relates it to success in business and in life.
Jon Smith was the man responsible for bringing the Premier League to the TV screens of one-fifth of the world’s population across 180 different countries. He created the initial concept of ‘Team England’, introduced product placement to football to make it the booming commercial success it is today and brokered some of the biggest deals of the era for players such as Diego Maradona, Gary Pallister and Andrey Arshavin.
Jon’s book “The Deal”, offers a unique and fascinating perspective into the business of sports management through the eyes of ‘Mr Football’, ‘super-agent’. It also shed light into the complex money-making scene behind the popular sport.
Aside from working with the biggest sports stars and creating “Team England”, Jon Smith was also the first commercial representative of the England Cricket Team, and the manager of the commercial affairs of the Welsh National Rugby Team. Additionally, Jon was the first promoter of all the North American sports in the UK (NBA, MLB, NFL and NHL) including the major early NFL games at Wembley – He also owned the London Monarchs (in the World Bowl winning season). He was the promoter of Mikhail Gorbachev’s UK Lecture Tour and a host of other major events in the UK and even occasionally in the USA.
It was not a smooth ride though. Jon has gone through rollercoaster of high-flying success to near bankruptcy. He shares an inspiring personal journey as well as insider knowledge of brokering deals at a high level and under extreme pressure in his presentations.
Contact us if you would like Jon Smith to inspire your team.