The Deal

''Excellent . . . an in-depth excavation of the murky and mysterious world of football business. Smith''s candid and often shocking book reveals the true workings of football business that take into account things few of us even could even imagine . . . The Deal answers some of those questions and leaves you wanting more. It is an educational tool that most fans could do with researching'' Joe Short, ExpressFootball analysis has grown at the same exponential rate as the sport''s popularity and yet one of its most intrinsic elements remains tantalisingly opaque: the role of ''agent''. The Deal is a unique and fascinating perspective into the business of sports management through the eyes of ''Mr Football'', ''super-agent'', Jon Smith. 800,000 watch their professional football team play each week and TV pulls in audiences of around 600 million. Despite these phenomenal figures, the complex money-making scene behind sport is one of its biggest mysteries. The Deal will be an unprecedented insight into this world, showing what goes on as players and big money change hands. The Deal is also the story of one of the shrewdest and most successful businessmen of our time. Documented through Jon''s personal rollercoaster of high-flying success to near bankruptcy, the book''s over-arching narrative will offer an inspiring personal journey as well as insider knowledge of brokering deals at a high level and under extreme pressure. The Deal will appeal strongly to buyers of business books as well as a significant number of sports fans interested to know what goes on in the back room of their favourite sport.