Oliver Arthur Unpacked

Ghana's most powerful football agent reveals his path to the top and how he plans to stay there

“Agents do nothing for the good of football. I'd like to see them lined up against a wall and machine-gunned ? Some accountants and solicitors with them” - Graham Taylor

You do not need to like the dour arrogance of George Graham to agree with him on the sentiments expressed above. Agents leave a sour taste in the mouths of many actors in football. They are the ultimate villains. They are a necessary evil that we tolerate in order to keep the billion dollar football business churning especially in Africa.

There are several stories of exploitation and false dreams sold by agents to wide eyed African players looking only to find fame and fortune in the cutthroat arena of European football. Their crushed ambitions are what lines the pockets of agents who enjoy a jet set lifestyle they happily display on Instagram and Facebook. Oliver Arthur did not want to become one of those guys, but he certainly started on that path.

“The first person I worked with was selfish. He was Italian. We had a talented crop of players from Ghana but he only looked out for himself and was ripping these boys off. I was uncomfortable with the situation so I broke the partnership and decided to start out on my own”.

That was over a decade ago. Thus, started a chapter that would lead to Oliver Arthur becoming the most powerful football agent in soccer mad Ghana.

To understand Arthur’s path though, requires a journey into the past.

The love of football has always been there for the Dansoman raised Arthur. He even had decent talent to make it as a semi professional. He, however, preferred scouting and administration. It was a job he was so good at that he was named as chairman of local side Liberty Professionals youth team. He would also run Bechem United for six years.

He also had a full time job in the airline and tourism sector and so travelled constantly. Italy was a particularly frequent destination and he would make two contacts that would shape his future career in different ways.

Mauro Bernabei and Leonardo Guisti.

“Bernabei helped organize tournaments that became a platform to find the best players available and also show them to the world at international tournaments”.

Guisti, however, was a different story. He is the aforementioned Italian.

Football would eventually win the battle for Arthur’s heart and become his full time occupation. Combining with two friends and brother Roy, they formed what was known as Atlas Sports Management in 2006. The plan was easy. Organize tournaments. Find the best young players in Ghana. Develop a path to Europe for them.

If only it were that simple.

This is where the dark world of football agents was truly opened to Arthur.

“I worked with Guisti and realized he was not doing justice to these players. I knew things could be done differently in a way where these kids would be better treated and managed as professionals. At the time , Guisti and I had nine players between us. I had to leave and start over again so I could do this in a better way. To serve the interests of Ghanaian players, I needed to do this on my own without somebody dictating the terms”.

Of the nine players their partnership represented, Arthur was forced to leave behind eight in order to break out on his own. The one he took was Richmond Boakye Yiadom.

Most Ghanaian transfers at that point were conducted by Europeans. The best known agents in the country’s history have all been foreigners. Domenico Ricci and Fabian Piveteau are the most famous.

It was difficult to find a Ghanaian agent who could open doors by himself and earn the trust of local and international clubs. Arthur planned to change that.

“I must say my previous career in the airline and tourism industry helped me significantly. I had an excellent relationship at the Italian embassy . I had taken teams from Bechem on sporting trips so that part was easy. The real task was getting meetings with these football clubs and convincing them, I was a credible facilitator”.

Success came slowly. The stain of his previous relationship with Leonardo Guisti was proving to be a problem in seeking meetings with clubs.

“Most clubs did not like Guisti’s reputation, so it made things tough anytime I tried a pitch at a club, but it also meant there was a gap to be filled. The language barrier was also an issue. The saving grace was that I convinced the clubs that I was the one who had brought the Guisti players to Europe and they had all done well”.

Once this was done, he also had to convince skeptical Ghanaian teenage players and their parents that he could create the same opportunities that existed during the partnership with Guisti.

“I never signed a contract with any player in Ghana. I prefer to work on trust. Formal agreements were only reached once I had done my job and the player had arrived in Europe with a signed offer from a team. I have lost players that way and it’s been painful, but that is what has stood out for me”.

Arthur was still yet to find that one deal that would give him validation in Ghana and become his tour de force. The one player he took from his break up would give him that.

Juventus had eyes on an 18 year old goal scoring prodigy owned by Genoa. Boakye Yiadom was the jewel in Arthur’s crown and together they took a dip into the unknown.

“The Boakye Yiadom to Juventus deal was the difference maker in what I was trying to build at the time. Once we were able to push that over the fence, it became easier for me. Any agent with a player at a club like Juventus is one to be reckoned with.”

The successful transition of another of his players, Afriyie Acquah at Palermo also helped his burgeoning reputation. It also did not go unnoticed that around the same time, Ghana’s U-20 team, the Black Satellites had a healthy dose of Arthur players. Leading to whispers of selection manipulation.

“People say I controlled the team during Sellas Tetteh and Wellington’s tenure because I had my boys there, but honestly speaking, which of the players did not deserve to be in the national team at the time”?

Arthur is now ensconced as Ghana’s premier football agent and the players who gave him that breakthrough are at various stages in their playing careers that can be termed successful, but according to him, that is not what gives him satisfaction.

“Playing football and making a living is fine, but I also want my players to succeed beyond that. Most Ghanaian footballers are afraid to mix with big business and corporate types. It is however essential that they are able to sit down with folks like these and learn about business and life. It’s one of the main reasons why I started my Calcio Trade Ball concept”.

Arthur has also moved beyond Ghana and wants to break into two markets, Nigeria and the domestic Italian market. He is not used to sitting still and waiting for opportunities to drop into his lap

“It only makes sense to make a foray there if you work in football. I now have Sadiq Umar at Roma, Orji Okonkwo and Kingsley Michael at Bologna . It has not been easy, but I am positive.”

Oliver Arthur’s football journey is far from over. He mulls over disappointments and missed opportunities, but still takes pride in the ceilings he has broken.

“Today there are a lot more Ghanaian agents who are doing well in the industry. It’s been a blessing to watch. A decade ago that would have been impossible and I’d like to think that in my own small way, I contributed to that. Ghanaian players have a reputation for being difficult and untrustworthy, but I say it’s how you treat them. I’ve been with some of my players for a decade and they are all happy. Show them that you care about them more than yourself. That is a winning model”.