My name is Liam Bowes. I am a FA Licensed Football Intermediary (agent) with over 10 years experience of working with elite level Professional Footballers. I am the co-founder and Managing Director of OYS Sports Management (offices Balham South London). We have earned a reputation for working with some of the most talented Professional Footballers. Our success has been born out of ethical client management as well as using our strong relationships with Football Clubs across Europe and America.
I grew up in a close knit family in South London. My grandparents arrived in England from Jamaica in the mid 1950's with very little to their name. They are part of the Windrush generation that worked very hard all their working life. Fortunately, they built a successful business that allowed them to live a life they deserve.
From as young as I could remember three things were engrained in us.
I remember my grandfather saying to my brother one evening, "In business the first thing you are is a man" It's something I’ve integrated into my professional and personal life.
I became more involved in the business side of football in 2009. I enjoyed playing the game (at no real significant level) as a boy, however, one of my best friends was a Premier League Footballer. Around that time I went to games as a friend just to support him. Over time, I built relationships with some of his teammates as well as senior figures at many of the Football Clubs he played for over the years.
During this period I had a steady job in a senior position in finance which I excelled at. In 2010 I was made redundant as the company I worked for ran into financial difficulty. With a redundancy pay off, I took time out to think about my next career move. One of my close friends said they thought I would make a good football agent. At that time I had no thought of getting into the business side of football. I told my friend, that I didn't think it was for me. But he made a point of reminding me of how many people I knew in the game that could help me get into the business. After some deliberation, I phoned one of my friends in football and asked him if he would speak to his agent about me doing some voluntary work at his agency. He agreed, and that was my first insight into the business world of football.
I spent approximately 9 months doing voluntary work at this well established agency. This was a real eye-opener for me because I was quickly exposed to some things that quite frankly went against my moral compass in many ways. Some aspects of the business I didn't like as it felt dishonest. Some of their clients were encouraged to sign contracts that were not in their long-term best interests but that financially benefited the agency. In truth I questioned whether the football industry was for me.
During my time working at the agency I was encouraged to name-drop high-profile clients within the business in the hope that they would automatically want to join the agency. In many ways I found it condescending because it did not give the potential new client an indication of what you could do for them.
After some careful consideration, I decided to part ways with the agency. I had to be authentic and true to myself. I almost felt myself slowly changing from the person I was which I didn't like. By early 2011 I co-founded OYS Sports Management. I was aware that trying to compete with larger agencies was going to be difficult in terms of resources, however, what I lacked in riches I more than made up for in character, endeavour, and integrity. As a result we have organically grown into an agency that has worked with clients who have won the Premier League, won the Scottish Premier League, participated in the Champions League, played in the Europa League, participated in European Championships and much more.
In my spare time I enjoy reading, going to the gym as well as spending time with family (we celebrate everything.. literally!) and close friends. I also volunteer to help the students at my old secondary school. I participate in workshops and other activities as often as I can which I really enjoy.
