Three players in the MTN Super League have alleged that some coaches are reluctant to sign players represented by agents, often denying them game time as a result.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the players criticized what they described as a continuing trend among Zambian coaches to pressure players into leaving their agents and sharing signing-on fees.
“If you have an agent, you will not be liked by Zambian coaches in the league,” one player said. “As a young, promising player, they want you to be agent-free so that they can act as your agent themselves and collect the signing-on fee.”
He added: “If you observe carefully, some coaches in Zambia tend to move with certain players to every club they join. For example, if Player A is at Club B and the coach leaves, the player often follows, and they both share the signing-on fee.”
For context, a signing-on fee in football is a payment made directly to a player when they sign a new contract. Players with well-organized agents are allegedly being mistreated because of this practice.
Young Players in MTN Super League Denied Opportunities
In a separate interview, another player echoed similar concerns, highlighting that young talents are often overlooked in favor of established players who agree to share signing-on fees with coaches.
“Have you noticed that it’s the same players moving from one club to another every season?” he said. “These are players who have been in the league for years, consistently getting game time and opportunities, while young players are left on the sidelines. It’s all because coaches and some club officials only want players who will share their signing-on fee.”
The players further claimed that coaches and officials conspire to sign only those players willing to pay.
“In some cases, players agree with the coach to give a certain percentage of their salary throughout their stay at the club. For example, if your salary is K12,000, the coach may demand K3,000 for you to be signed and guaranteed game time. Sometimes the coach and club officials agree on this, and it is affecting young players,” another player said.
Efforts to obtain comments from club officials and coaches were unsuccessful by the time of publication.
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