Football Agent Gonsalves Helping Local Players
[Written by Stephen Wright]
Bermudian football agent Jason Gonsalves has been handling the interests of multiple local players since launching his sports management company three years ago.
Gonsalves, the founder and director of AceBoy Sports Group, has three Bermuda national team players in his stable of clients – Daniel Cook [unattached], Quinaceo Hunt [formerly of Wakefield, Thornaby, Billingham Synthonia and Pickering Town] and Chikosi Basden [Buckhurst Hill].
He also looks after the interests of Ryan Lopes [Hartley Wintney] and Amar Lewis [formerly of Harlow Town and Stanway Rovers].
A Fifa-licensed agent, Gonsalves primarily helps build the profiles of his players, designing their CVs, producing high-quality highlight reels and connecting them with English clubs, non-league and league.
“It’s exciting to work with these players, seeing them progress and placing them with clubs,” Gonsalves told Bernews.
“I’m hoping all five of my guys are settled at English clubs soon. I’m committed to them all.
“I need to click with the players I represent and share similar ideas about their football careers. I am talking to other local players but don’t want to take on another client until new Fifa agent regulations come into effect on October 1.
“Many more Bermudians can play at a competitive non-league level in England and beyond – I’m sure of that.”
Gonsalves, 27, worked as an intermediatory agent for several years before recently passing his Fifa exams, learning some valuable lessons while representing Bermudian players De’Andre Wainwright and Jahkari Furbert.
“I’ve definitely grown as an agent and still act as a conduit between player and club,” he said, “but now my contact pool is far more sophisticated than it was previously.
“I’m operating very differently now than I was as an intermediary agent several years ago.”
Moving from the domestic amateur level to a professional or semi-professional environment in England requires a cultural adjustment, with Gonsalves admitting he has, on occasions, had to “talk guys off the ledge” as they process the inevitable ups and downs.
“The first couple of years, it was a case of managing the expectations of players,” said Gonsalves, an associate broker at Oneglobal Broking in Hamilton. “Moving from Bermuda to England and handling any setbacks that come their way is hard for these guys.
“I always remind them they are not the only ones going through it. It’s a tough industry.”
After all, Gonsalves is no stranger to sporting setbacks.
A former national team basketball player at youth level, Gonsalves’ competitive journey prematurely ended after being cut from the roster at Endicott College, Massachusetts, as a freshman.
He gradually pivoted into sports management after setting up an Instagram page promoting the exploits of Bermudian overseas athletes.
“In my sophomore-junior year, I was thinking of ways to get involved with athletes from Bermuda,” said Gonsalves, who has a master’s degree in sports management.
“I still had an itch to be around sportspeople on the island. I set up an Instagram page to promote Bermudian athletes playing abroad and organised a basketball tournament in Bermuda in 2018, and things grew from there. I think I was already leaning towards the player representation side of things even back then.”
The former Saltus Grammar School student added: “I definitely want to take this further. If the day comes when I can do this full-time, that would be amazing.”
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