Profile
connections with other countries in Europe and also America, so we’re well known worldwide.” Mel, an alumnus of St John’s College, Cambridge, added: “I was fortunate to live in America for a couple of years in the ‘90s. I could see then that sports law was a big industry and I realised it was going to happen in England as well. America was probably eight years ahead of England and I knew it was coming here. Some of the things I’ve learnt over there I’ve brought over here and refi ned them. Now I’m pleased to say
“T e hardest thing about being involved in football is getting through to the people that count”
that people can go to university here and study sports law.” A keen participant and an intrinsic lover of sport, Mel has always appeared destined to be involved in sport in some capacity. At no point was that more evident than one remarkable summer afternoon in 1970. Mel explains: “I went to Mexico to watch England in the World Cup. I didn’t know anybody in the country and certainly didn’t know any famous footballers. But by total
came to the wedding. I think I was the only person involved in the reception who wasn’t famous.” From then on Mel had the inside track
on the game, an attribute that would prove invaluable to his future dealings. “It was a lovely day and I have been friendly with those people ever since,” he said. “I think that was the start of me getting involved with managers and players. T e hardest thing about being involved in football is getting through to the people that count. If you know them and you can phone them and they can take your call you’re half way there.” An Arsenal fan, Mel now has the ear of the current Gunners manager Arsène Wenger, among countless other professionals at the very top of the game. “I give him lots of advice which he doesn’t
take!” Mel jokes. “Wenger lives, breathes and eats football. T ere’s nothing about any player you could tell him that he doesn’t already know. One thing I’ve learned is that you must never say to a manager ‘What you need is...’. T at’s the quickest way to be shown the door. What you can do is say ‘this player is a quality player, if you want to know more about him I can facilitate the transfer should you so wish.’” Mel was instrumental in bringing in Fabio Capello as England manager and set the
“You should always have a lawyer to make sure you’re getting the right amount”
wheels in motion for the England v Ghana fi xture at Wembley in 2011. His infl uence in the game extends beyond the remit of legal adviser and he plays an active role as an agent. Despite this, Mel is sceptical as to whether players require an agent at all. He said: “Sport is big business these days. A lot of money changes hands. You should always have a lawyer to make sure you’re
coincidence the hotel I had chosen to stay in was the venue for anybody who was anybody in football. Just prior to the World Cup I was going out with an air hostess from Madrid and she came with me. She agreed that if we got married in Mexico as opposed to England or Spain we’d avoid upsetting each other’s family. T e Arsenal manager (Bertie Mee) was in the hotel, as were people like Billy Wright, Charlie Cooke and Dave Sexton. We had a wedding reception in the hotel. T e only people I knew were those people staying in the hotel, as I didn’t have any other friends to invite. And because I was English they all supported me and
getting the right amount. I always say ‘who better to negotiate for a footballer and to draw up a contract than a lawyer who does contracts all day long’. I always bang the drum for lawyers as opposed to agents. I honestly think that a sportsman needs only a lawyer and an accountant. If he feels like having an agent as well then that’s up to him. Some of the agents are very competent and others not so. I think it’s always important to go to someone who’s been recommended, somebody who’s got the track record, somebody who’s acted for lots of other people. Everybody thinks they can be an agent but of course it’s not easy.”
Mel, who also provides representation
for some of the leading boxers, athletes and tennis players, believes the contact book is king. “T e key is to be able to phone the manager or his chief scout and ask him whether he’s looking for a player or knows a player he’d like to move on. T e thing about being a lawyer is if they speak to you they know it’s going to be in strict confi dence. If you happen to represent a manager for example he can tell you how he wants to improve his team and the sort of positions he wants to improve upon. But they have to trust you to do that.” In 1997 Mel represented former
Wimbledon goalkeeper Hans Segers in one of the most high profi le criminal cases in the history of British football. Along with fellow professionals Bruce Grobbelaar and John Fashanu, Segers stood accused of fi xing Premier League matches in 1994, but was eventually acquitted. T e case, which dominated the front and back pages at the time, represented something of a career highlight for Mel. “I’d say that’s probably the most interesting case I’ve been involved with from a legal point. Football itself was on trial. Everybody wanted to know whether the matches we watch in England are genuine or pre-arranged. T e prosecution wanted to look at isolated incidents of various matches which they thought were suspicious. We argued that you can’t look at two or three incidents where a mistake may have been made, you can only look at the whole 90 minutes. If you do you can see how hard he was trying throughout. He may have made a mistake but he may have made fi ve blinding saves which everybody has forgotten. T at was why the case lasted such a long time. It was a bit like watching Match of the Day and getting paid for it!” Mel’s enthusiasm for sport is still very
much in evidence, and shows little sign of waning. He said: “I think it’s fair to say that, apart from family, sport is the most important thing in my life. When I was a kid I would be one of the people standing in the rain collecting autographs. Now these people come to my offi ce for my autograph. Albeit to sign documents!”
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