"Agent" covers several jobs at once, and the fee buys all of them whether or not the athlete needs each. The clearest description comes from two places: the players' associations' regulations, which list the activities they certify, and a Harvard Law School study that interviewed NFL contract advisors about what fills their days. This page puts the two together, then says who else does each task and what certification is.
The job, task by task
| Task | What it involves | Who else does it |
|---|---|---|
| The playing contract | Knowing the collective bargaining agreement, comparable contracts and the cap; knowing what is guaranteed and when; negotiating with the club | The player, in every league; the union itself in the NBA, at the player's request; a lawyer who is certified |
| Endorsements and NIL | Finding brands, setting a rate, reading usage rights, exclusivity and term, invoicing, entering deals into NIL Go | The athlete, through marketplaces and direct contact; a marketing representative |
| Relations with the club | Day-to-day contact with the front office, playing time and role conversations, trade requests | The player; the union on bargained matters |
| Referrals | Financial advisors, accountants, lawyers, trainers, insurers | The union (the NFLPA and NBPA register financial advisors); a CPA |
| Draft preparation | Combine training, travel and housing before the draft, often paid for by the agent and, the Harvard study notes, sometimes repaid if the player switches agents | The athlete, paying directly; a family |
| Disputes and grievances | Injury grievances, knowing the deadlines, collecting money owed | The union (the NFLPA recovered a $2 million roster bonus for a self-represented player in 2018) |
| Career counseling | Options after the career, business ventures, media | Advisors the athlete chooses |
| Errands | Travel, housing, tickets, family logistics; the Harvard study lists them | Anyone the athlete trusts |
The Harvard study, part of a Harvard Law School report on NFL player health, found agents' duties "run the gamut" and that about 62% of NFL agents are attorneys. The NBPA's regulations define what they certify as advice on negotiating and enforcing contracts, compensation negotiations, and "the negotiation of marketing or sponsorship agreements."
How much of it is negotiating
Less than the title suggests. An agent speaking to the Baltimore Sun in March 2023, while Lamar Jackson was negotiating his own contract, said negotiating is "only about 20%" of the job, and that players often have "an inflated sense of their personal market." The other 80% is the table above: relationships, time, deadlines and errands. That is the honest case for an agent, and it is the case the athletes who went without one answered by hiring a lawyer for the paper and keeping the union close for the rest.
Agent versus attorney
The two words get used as one and are not. An attorney holds a bar licence and gives legal advice. An agent represents the athlete in negotiations and, for a pro playing contract, holds a union certification. Pepperdine's law school puts the difference plainly: an agent "does not necessarily need a formal education," while an attorney does, and agents must also register and post bonds with the states where they recruit. Many people hold both; DeAndre Hopkins described the person he hired after negotiating his own extension as "my lawyer, who's an agent." Under the state athlete-agent acts, an attorney who negotiates or recruits for an athlete is an athlete agent and is regulated as one; the lawyer page has each rule.
What certification is
Certification is the line between someone who may advise a player and someone who may negotiate with a club. It is a union process, not a state licence.
- NFLPA: an undergraduate and a postgraduate degree, or seven years of negotiating experience in their place; a seminar; a written exam, with two straight failures barring a new application for five years; liability insurance; dues of $1,500 a year for an agent with fewer than ten active clients, $2,000 for ten or more. More than 850 agents are certified for a league of about 2,000 players.
- NBPA: a degree from an accredited four-year college (the union may accept negotiating experience in its discretion), a background check, an in-person exam each January in New York, a $750 application fee and $2,500 a year in dues from September 2026, tiered up by client count.
- MLBPA: no degree requirement for general certification; a $2,500 application fee; an open-book written exam; and an applicant is not certified until at least one major league player designates them, within four years of passing.
- NHLPA: an application with education, background and business history; about 200 agents are certified.
- Outside the unions: NIL and endorsement agents have no certification anywhere. Forty-two states require them to register under an athlete-agent act, which checks identity and history and requires a written contract, but tests no competence.
What an agent cannot do
The rules bound the job as well as the fee. An agent cannot represent an enrolled college athlete for professional sports marketing without costing them eligibility, outside the men's basketball path (NCAA Bylaw 12.3.2). An agent cannot be the source of an NIL payment (22.3.2). An agent who is not certified cannot negotiate with an NFL, NBA, NHL or WNBA club, whatever their relationship to the player. And under SPARTA and the state acts, an agent cannot recruit with false promises or gifts, or sign an athlete without the warning box and the cancellation right. The full guide covers each.
Picking one, if you do
The NFLPA's own advice to players is the best short list: interview several, verify their current clients, check they are in good standing, and read the regulations before signing. The contracts page adds the five red flags law firms find in representation agreements: a perpetual licence to the athlete's name, termination only the agent can use freely, commissions that outlive the relationship, no stated duty to the athlete, and no registration.
How Leave fits
Leave does the information half of the table: it explains contracts in plain words, shows what similar work pays and the rules and deadlines for the athlete's level, holds public opportunities as threads, and keeps every deal in one record. It takes 0% from the athlete. It does not negotiate, represent, solicit or sign for anyone, and it is not legal, tax or financial advice. The athlete is their own agent; Leave is what they use.
Questions athletes ask
What does a sports agent do for an athlete?
Negotiates the playing contract, finds and negotiates endorsements, handles day-to-day relations with the team, refers the athlete to financial and legal advisors, prepares them for the draft, files grievances and chases money owed, and gives career advice. A Harvard Law School study of NFL contract advisors found the duties run the gamut and include personal errands.
What is the difference between a sports agent and a sports attorney?
An attorney holds a bar licence and gives legal advice; an agent represents the athlete in negotiations and, for pro playing contracts, is certified by the players' association. The roles overlap, about 62% of NFL agents are attorneys, but an attorney who negotiates for an athlete is doing an agent's work and is regulated as one.
What does it take to become a certified agent?
It differs by union. The NFLPA requires an undergraduate and a postgraduate degree (or seven years of negotiating experience), a seminar, a written exam, liability insurance and dues of $1,500 or $2,000 a year. The NBPA requires a four-year degree, a background check, an exam held each January and $2,500 a year in dues from 2026. The MLBPA has no degree requirement for general certification, a $2,500 application, an exam, and a rule that an applicant is not certified until a major league player designates them.
What does an NIL agent do?
Finds brand deals, sets and negotiates the rate, reads the usage rights, exclusivity and term, invoices, and sometimes enters deals into NIL Go as the athlete's named representative. Opendorse's co-founder told Fortune in September 2026 that what agents mostly supply is pay information athletes lack, because there is no central database of college deals.
Do I need an agent?
No law or league requires one. Every players' association allows a player to represent himself, the NCAA lets an athlete or family member negotiate with a pro team, and NIL agents are optional. Whether one is worth the percentage depends on the athlete's market, time and appetite for the work; the full guide lays out who has done it and how it went.
Be your own agent. Leave.