Inside the world of football agents with Jo Tongue

23 Oct 2026 · 31 min

Episode Inside the world of football agents with Jo Tongue

0:00 30:47

What does it take to become a top football agent in the UK? From negotiating million-pound contracts, to managing player transfers, a football agent holds the power to change the game long before players walk onto the pitch.

In this episode of The Business, we explore the high-stakes world of sports management, where agent fees topped £400 million in the Premier League last year. Jo Tongue, leading football agent and chief executive of Tongue Tied Management, joins Hannah Prevett, associate business editor at The Sunday Times, to take us behind the scenes of commercial deal making in football.

Jo discusses managing players' careers, negotiating commercial deals, and representing some of the biggest names across British football, including the manager of Manchester United, Michael Carrick.

As a board member of Women in Football, Jo also reflects on working in a male-dominated industry and addressing the persistent inequalities facing female sports professionals.

On social media she says abuse "is rife for women, to the point where I think a lot of females just go, ‘I'm just not gonna put anything out there because it's just not worth the stress."