Kia Joorabchian is an Iranian-British businessman who has become one of the most influential intermediaries in soccer. A former president of Media Sports Investments (MSI), he was at the center of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano’s arrival at West Ham United F.C. in 2006, and later of moves such as Philippe Coutinho’s transfer to FC Barcelona in 2018. Yet he is not a licensed agent. He presents himself as an advisor to players and clubs.
Nicknamed a “super-agent” by the English press, Kia Joorabchian built his career outside the traditional paths. He never played soccer, never took an agent exam and made his fortune in finance before turning his attention to the game.
His career is especially instructive for candidates preparing for the FIFA agent exam. The Tevez affair exposed the abuses of TPO (third-party ownership) and contributed to tougher regulations, now set out in the RSTP (Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players). His status as an unlicensed advisor also illustrates the line drawn by the FFAR (FIFA Football Agent Regulations) between influence and official representation.
Kiavash Joorabchian, known as Kia Joorabchian, was born on July 14, 1971, in Tehran. His family left Iran after the 1979 revolution, lived in the United Kingdom and Canada, and then settled in England when he was about 16. He holds Iranian, British and Canadian citizenship.
After studying chemistry and management at Queen Mary College in London, which he left in his second year, he first worked for his father, a car dealer, and then as a trader on the International Petroleum Exchange in London. In the late 1990s, he founded the investment company American Capital in New York, which acquired 85% of the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant in 1999.
Kia Joorabchian does not hold an agent license. He presents himself as an advisor to players and clubs and works with Nojan Bedroud, a licensed agent, within his company Sports Invest UK.
This investor profile explains how he approaches soccer. For Kia Joorabchian, a player is not only a client to represent but also an asset whose value can be developed, which led him to take an early interest in players’ economic rights.
In 2004, Kia Joorabchian created Media Sports Investments (MSI) and signed a ten-year partnership with Corinthians, one of Brazil’s biggest clubs. MSI put in approximately €28 million ($35 million), including approximately €16 million ($20 million) to clear the club’s debts, in exchange for 51% of its future profits.
The fund financed high-profile signings, including Argentina’s Carlos Tevez, bought from Boca Juniors for approximately €18 million ($22 million), followed by Javier Mascherano. Corinthians won the Brazilian championship in 2005. However, the relationship quickly soured: the club cut ties with MSI in 2007 and ended the year with relegation. In Brazil, charges were brought against Kia Joorabchian before being dropped in 2014.
In August 2006, Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano joined West Ham United F.C. Their economic rights did not belong to the club but to companies linked to MSI, which Kia Joorabchian continued to represent even though he had stepped down as the fund’s president in June 2006.
In April 2007, the Premier League hit West Ham United F.C. with a record fine of €8 million (£5.5 million). The club had not disclosed these agreements, which gave third parties decisive influence over the players’ futures. No personal sanction was imposed on Kia Joorabchian.
Saved in large part by Tevez’s goals, West Ham United F.C. avoided relegation, while Sheffield United F.C. went down. The Yorkshire club took legal action and, in 2009, secured a settlement of approximately €22 million (£20 million), paid by West Ham over five years. Tevez then joined Manchester United F.C. in 2007 on a two-year loan, followed by Manchester City F.C. in 2009.
From the creation of MSI to the worldwide ban on TPO, the affair spans more than ten years. The table below traces its key stages and their consequences for clubs and for the regulations.
| Date | Event | Consequence |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Creation of MSI and partnership with Corinthians | Arrival of Tevez, then Mascherano, in Brazil |
| August 2006 | Tevez and Mascherano join West Ham United F.C. | Economic rights held by third-party companies |
| April 2007 | West Ham fined €8 million (£5.5 million) | Third-party agreements not disclosed to the Premier League |
| 2009 | Settlement between West Ham and Sheffield United | Approximately €22 million (£20 million) paid over five years |
| May 1, 2015 | Article 18ter of the RSTP comes into effect | Worldwide ban on third-party ownership of economic rights |
After the West Ham affair, Kia Joorabchian changed his model. He no longer financed entire clubs but advised players, mainly Brazilian and South American, on their moves to Europe. He relied on a network built in Brazil and on close relationships with several executives at English clubs.
This overview covers the main transfers Kia Joorabchian has been associated with since 2008, from Robinho to Willian. It highlights the central role of Brazilian players in his business and the weight of English clubs:
| Year | Player | Deal | Reported Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Robinho | Real Madrid to Manchester City F.C. | approximately €41 million (£32.5 million) |
| 2010 | Ramires | Benfica to Chelsea F.C. | approximately €22 million |
| 2011 | David Luiz | Benfica to Chelsea F.C. | approximately €25 million (£21 million) (+ Nemanja Matić sent to Benfica) |
| 2013 | Willian | Anzhi Makhachkala to Chelsea F.C. | approximately €35 million (£30 million) |
| 2013 | Marquinhos | AS Roma to Paris Saint-Germain | approximately €31.5 million (£27 million) |
| 2018 | Philippe Coutinho | Liverpool F.C. to FC Barcelona | €120 million, up to €160 million with bonuses |
| 2019 | David Luiz | Chelsea F.C. to Arsenal F.C. | approximately €9 million (£8 million) |
| 2020 | Willian | Chelsea F.C. to Arsenal F.C. | free transfer |
Philippe Coutinho’s move remains his most spectacular deal. In January 2018, the Brazilian midfielder left Liverpool F.C. for FC Barcelona in one of the most expensive transfers in history.
The Ramires case, for its part, shows Kia Joorabchian’s investor mindset: Jazzy Limited, a company run by Joorabchian, reportedly acquired 50% of Ramires’ economic rights in June 2010 for €6 million; Chelsea F.C. then signed the player in August 2010 for approximately €22 million. This type of transaction is now prohibited.
Kia Joorabchian makes no secret of his attachment to Arsenal F.C. His ties to the club run notably through Edu, a former Gunners midfielder and one of his first clients, who became Arsenal’s technical director and then sporting director between 2019 and 2024.
During this period, Arsenal F.C. signed several players linked to Kia Joorabchian, including David Luiz in 2019, followed by Willian and Cédric Soares in 2020. These signings drew sharp criticism, notably from former Liverpool F.C. defender Jamie Carragher, who saw them as a sign of the intermediary’s excessive influence over the club’s recruitment. Kia Joorabchian responded that sporting decisions were up to the manager, Mikel Arteta.
This pattern is not unique to Arsenal F.C. Kia Joorabchian served as a soccer advisor to Newcastle United F.C. in 2010 and as an official advisor to Reading F.C. and its owner in 2022, while his alleged influence over Everton F.C.’s recruitment prompted protest banners from fans at Goodison Park the same year.
Kia Joorabchian remained very active in 2026, both in the transfer market and in club takeovers.
In July 2026, the English press reported that Bruno Guimarães had brought in Kia Joorabchian to help facilitate his move from Newcastle United F.C. to Arsenal F.C., alongside his longtime representative, Alexis Malavolta, and Giuliano Bertolucci. The deal was completed over the summer for approximately €88 million (£75 million), with a four-year contract plus a one-year option. The exact role of each intermediary in the negotiations has not been made public.
In June 2026, Kia Joorabchian appeared alongside John Textor and Greek shipowner Evangelos Marinakis, owner of Olympiacos and Nottingham Forest F.C., in a bid to take over the SAF of Botafogo, the company that owns the Brazilian club. The club’s advisory board unanimously rejected the bid in favor of the offer from the fund GDA Luma Capital.
Kia Joorabchian’s career touches on several topics on the FIFA agent exam syllabus. Above all, it helps explain why certain rules exist.
Article 18bis of the RSTP prohibits a club from entering into a contract that allows a third party to influence its independence or its decisions on recruitment and transfers. Article 18ter, in effect since May 1, 2015, prohibits a club or a player from entering into an agreement that gives a third party a right to all or part of future transfer compensation. To be checked against the official study materials for the current edition.
Several takeaways stand out for candidates:
The Joorabchian case shows that a lack of transparency can cost a club millions and permanently reshape the regulation of an entire industry.
Kia Joorabchian is a one-of-a-kind figure in soccer: a financier turned intermediary, with no agent license but considerable influence over the transfer market. From Corinthians to Arsenal F.C., he has built a unique network between Brazil and England.
His career is also a lesson in regulation. The Tevez affair contributed to the ban on third-party ownership of players, and his status as an advisor is a reminder that only a license allows someone to officially represent a player. For aspiring agents, a strong understanding of the RSTP and the FFAR means understanding the rules that grew out of these cases, ahead of the next exam cycle expected in spring 2027.
