30. Deflated football
Prof. James Esson
My research looks at how human traffickers posing as football 鈥榓gents鈥� are exploiting the hopes and aspirations of West African youth who want to better their lives by playing professional football in Europe.
In some cases, the player obtains a contract with a club but it is exploitative. In most cases, any alleged interest from a European club is bogus, and the ‘agent’ takes his fee but abandons the player without finding them a club.
Geography is at heart of this issue. How? These ‘agents’ are aware that inequality between regions is a key reason why an increasing number of African youth are desperate to migrate to Europe, and ‘agents’ use this knowledge to manipulate young African would-be footballers.
