Some interesting info about Pini Zahavi from Wikipedia:
Pini Zahavi (born in Ness Ziona, Israel) is a football agent who has been involved in some of the most expensive (and controversial) transfer episodes of the last decade. Zahavi is often described as a football transfer super agent or a transfer svengali.
His sports career began when he was a writer for the Israeli tabloid Yedioth Ahronoth and the contacts he made in that position helped him to establish himself when he changed career to become an agent.
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Business deals
He helped facilitate the takeover of two English Premier League clubs by fellow Jewish associates, Chelsea Football Club by Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, and Portsmouth Football Club by French businessman Alexandre Gaydamak.
Transfers he has brokered include:
Clients he represents include:
Zahavi is co-owner of Charlton, a media company which holds the rights to show many major football tournaments in the Israel.
Controversy
After a takeover of Chelsea, former owner Ken Bates described Zahavi as a 'dickhead'. Zahavi responded by saying:
The Israeli public protested when many important games in the 2006 FIFA World Cup were shown only on a pay-per-view basis.
Following the Lord Stevens 'bung enquiry', Zahavi was reported to be involved in "making illicit payments" on a deal involving Fabio Rochemback and fellow agent Barry Silkman.
“Agent Pinhas Zahavi has failed to co-operate fully with the inquiry . There was an initial failure to disclose his involvement in a number of transfers but, more seriously, he has failed to provide the inquiry with complete bank statements due to the confidential nature of them. There has also been a lack of responsiveness by Zahavi. There remains questions relating to his relationship with, and payments to, licensed agent Barry Silkman, and with Silkman's failure to initially disclose his involvement in all the transactions in which he has received fees.”[1]
Pini Zahavi (born in Ness Ziona, Israel) is a football agent who has been involved in some of the most expensive (and controversial) transfer episodes of the last decade. Zahavi is often described as a football transfer super agent or a transfer svengali.
His sports career began when he was a writer for the Israeli tabloid Yedioth Ahronoth and the contacts he made in that position helped him to establish himself when he changed career to become an agent.
//
Business deals
He helped facilitate the takeover of two English Premier League clubs by fellow Jewish associates, Chelsea Football Club by Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, and Portsmouth Football Club by French businessman Alexandre Gaydamak.
Transfers he has brokered include:
- Rio Ferdinand to Manchester United, July 2002, £30m
- Juan Sebastián Verón to Manchester United, July 2001, £28m
- Yakubu Aiyegbeni to Middlesbrough, July 2005, £7.5m
Clients he represents include:
Zahavi is co-owner of Charlton, a media company which holds the rights to show many major football tournaments in the Israel.
Controversy
After a takeover of Chelsea, former owner Ken Bates described Zahavi as a 'dickhead'. Zahavi responded by saying:
This revolting character is not worthy of a response. If I was in his shoes I would wake up every morning praying to God and thanking him that Pini Zahavi saved him from bankruptcy and put £19million in his pocket. He is history as far as English football is concerned.
—Pini Zahavi
In 2005 the English Football Association recommended that Zahavi be investigated for his part in the Ashley Cole 'tapping-up' affair. He was also present when then-England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson met with Chelsea owner Abramovich; Eriksson later issued a statement denying his meeting was for business reasons.—Pini Zahavi
The Israeli public protested when many important games in the 2006 FIFA World Cup were shown only on a pay-per-view basis.
Following the Lord Stevens 'bung enquiry', Zahavi was reported to be involved in "making illicit payments" on a deal involving Fabio Rochemback and fellow agent Barry Silkman.
“Agent Pinhas Zahavi has failed to co-operate fully with the inquiry . There was an initial failure to disclose his involvement in a number of transfers but, more seriously, he has failed to provide the inquiry with complete bank statements due to the confidential nature of them. There has also been a lack of responsiveness by Zahavi. There remains questions relating to his relationship with, and payments to, licensed agent Barry Silkman, and with Silkman's failure to initially disclose his involvement in all the transactions in which he has received fees.”[1]