Breaking Down the Tevez Transfer

In a recent article I touched the lack of depth at the striker position for Manchester United. I noted that beyond Alan Smith, provided he remains at United for the season, there is little support in attack for Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha. I didn’t mention Man United’s latest transfer target, West Ham United’s (for now) Carlos Tevez, whose obstacle-laden move to Old Trafford has become almost comedic in its inefficiency. The omission of Tevez was not an oversight. I had hoped that I could write a follow-up to my original piece once Tevez’s transfer was complete. Although the Argentine striker is anything but signed, sealed and delivered, this is an appropriate time to examine the details of this bizarre deal.

What makes this transfer deal so unique is the arrangement between Tevez, his agent, Kia Joorabchian, and the bidding clubs. Under the arrangement, Media Sports Investments (MSI), a company formed by a group of football investors, which was headed by Joorabchian until June 2006, technically owns permanent rights to its clients’ footballing careers. The players are then “loaned out” on long-term deals, which, for all intents and purposes, play out like traditional transfers, except for the fact that MSI receives a healthy portion of all transfer fees for its players and never relinquishes control over the player to the team for which he plays (it’s kinda like a company that sells timeshares). Prior to this episode, MSI was best known for its controversial deal with Brazilian football club Corinthians, in which MSI would bolster the club’s bank account and roster of players in exchange for a significant degree of control over the club. This deal led to Tevez and his fellow Argentine international, Javier Mascherano, arriving at Corinthians, and ultimately, it played a central role in their controversial September 2006 move to West Ham United in the Premeirship.

In February 2007, Mascherano departed West Ham, going to Liverpool on either on a deal whose financial details are still somewhat sketchy. As for Tevez, he was pursued in the transfer market by a number of top clubs, including Manchester United and Italian champions Inter Milan, finally agreeing to personal terms with United in early July. Because the Permiership has serious questions regarding the distribution of the proceeds from the deal, what should have been a relatively routine £20 million transfer deal has turned into a complete circus. The Premiership has insisted that any deal for Tevez must be completed between Manchester United and West Ham United (not MSI), with a majority of any transfer fee going to West Ham.

As things stand now, Carlos Tevez is still a member of West Ham and Manchester United are still in pursuit of his services, reportedly willing to pay as much as £30 million to buy his rights. Earlier this month, ManU and West Ham agreed to call in FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, to rule on the matter. Sadly, on July 24, FIFA declared that it could not render a decision on the matter of Tevez’s ownership and recommended that the case be sent to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the world’s highest court for sporting matters. Oh yeah, just one other thing! Remember Carlos Tevez’s slightly sketch agent? On July 13, an international arrest warrant was issued for one, Kia Joorabchian, for money laundering at Corinthians, the Brazilian club where MSI is a majority stakeholder. Joorabchian has denied all wrongdoing, but, seriously, if the Brazilian government thinks you’re corrupt, you probably did something wrong.

What does all this nonsense actually mean? In the end, probably not a whole lot for anyone that does not have a stake in Carlos Tevez’s transfer fee. In all likelihood a ruling will be handed down outlining the proper recipients of Manchester United’s money and Tevez will likely be on the pitch at Old Trafford, helping ManU defend its Premiership title. The greatest long-term effect of any ruling handed down on this matter will not be felt in this transfer deal, but it will be the precedent that will be set, setting the boundaries for agents and keeping shady organizations like MSI out of professional sports.

There! I’d felt that it wouldn’t be appropriate to address the issue of Carlos Tevez on the pitch without addressing this ongoing fiasco off of it. Be sure to look for my forthcoming article in which I will examine Carlos Tevez on the pitch and analyze his potential impact on the United attack.