David McKechnie looks at the problems facing football agents in a week when Wayne Rooney's signature was much sought after

When Wayne Rooney beat David Seaman from 30 yards at Goodison Park last Saturday, everyone assumed it was the football story of the week. But there are people in the game who figure it was bettered two days later, when news broke that the precocious Evertonian was signing for Paul Stretford's Proactive sports agency. As coups for agents go, it was the equivalent of running the length of the field with the ball in an FA Cup final and chipping the goalkeeper.

Rooney may not officially join Proactive or sign his first professional contract until December, but at the agency's office in south Manchester this week, they giddily spoke his name in whispers like excitable schoolboys. Not since Michael Owen has a youngster with so much potential emerged in the Premiership, and this at a time when football agents must face the fact that the English game's financial boom is ending. Despised and distrusted for so long, some of the industry's lesser lights may soon find themselves frequenting the job centre.

Despite the signs that profits are shrinking in English football, there has been no let-up in the number of people applying to FIFA for an agent's licence. England has 174 licensed agents, compared to 123 in Spain, 100 in France and only 55 in Italy. When George Graham was found guilty of accepting an illegal payment of £425,000 from Norwegian agent Rune Hauge seven years ago, it may have done nothing for English football's reputation, but when it came to attracting a new breed of agents it was magnetic.

The introduction of the transfer window and the collapse of TV deals around Europe has changed the climate of the transfer market however, presenting agents with a challenge far greater than the one which faces them when striking their next deal.

"I think within a year or 18 months there will be half a dozen agencies, with nothing available for individual agents," says agent Robert Segal. "The market just isn't there."

Segal's agency, The Sport Entertainment & Media Group (SEM), is another of a handful of super-agents that are beginning to dominate the sport. SEM represent players like Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry, the boxer Lennox Lewis, as well as Ireland internationals Stephen Carr, Steve Finnan, Ian Harte and Kenny Cunningham. If the game of football itself has reached a point where only the fittest survive, Segal says that will soon be reflected in his industry too.

"The fact of the matter, as far as agents are concerned, is that there are very few doing business anyway," he says. "We've officially 174 and another 100 probably failed the last exams. Those that pass are in for a real shock because it's not an easy profession. And this is a profession, it's not a job. You have to know your stuff because the clubs all know their stuff and unless you've got an ability with the clientele and you know the way the profession works, nobody rings you.

"The rewards are there, but it's not a stroll in the park. We specialise in quality service and quality players so we'll be okay, but it's a very tricky market. Only 18 months ago I was by myself, looking after 55 players. And it is no joke. When the market was better you could do transactions, but I can't see how an individual now can possibly survive.

"You've got some agents out there trying to pick up the next Wayne Rooney and you may well get a 25-year-old with the next Wayne Rooney. But in five years' time when he starts earning some money, he won't have survived that long to see the benefit coming through. You just can't do it."

As a director of Proactive in Manchester, former Ireland international Kevin Moran has had a busy week. He watched news of the deal with Rooney break in the media, then on Thursday he heard the announcement that his company's pre-tax profits were up 50 per cent. Moran admits the future for prospective football agents is clouded in uncertainty.

"I think the numbers will definitely drop," he says. "I think people will see that you don't go into a business without first of all looking into it and seeing what it takes. If you look at transfer deals, there are a number of clubs saying they probably won't do any. The clubs don't want to move players because there is uncertainty in the market and that will certainly affect our industry.

'We're fortunate that all the time we're looking to increase the other side of the business. We've not just concentrated on this bit, we've also developed our sports marketing and sponsorship division, which has made huge strides forward and is growing all the time.

"That's also the reason why we've set up the youth development division. We've had to more or less look upon that as the future as well, to have a look at these younger players and earmark those coming through."

Because a massive proportion of a football agent's income is earned from commission on transfers, FIFA's introduction of transfer windows, which only permits the movement of players twice a year, has had a damaging effect on agencies. On top of that, only 12 Premiership and six Football League clubs were profitable last year, which means when the opportunity comes, many traditional big spenders can't afford to buy players.

With a BA in commerce from UCD and a stint running his own greeting card and pizza businesses behind him, Moran joined Proactive as a director in 1994. The Premiership soon flourished and Proactive likewise. When the company was floated on the stock exchange last year, Moran is reported to have made £2 million. Having seen the game boom and now slow down, he says clubs which are being forced to trade sensibly will even end up making money.

"I believe that football is now looking in the right direction," he says. "It may take two or three years to get out of this, but they've got to move on and be a lot more prudent and a lot more cautious in terms of the contracts they'll sign. There may be much more realism brought into the game. I think the clubs will turn around and start making money and then I think people will start looking upon this industry in a different light.

"There may be some agents who do not act in a proper manner. It's like anything, a few bad apples can make a whole lot rotten. But I believe that in the market place itself, the clubs and the managers involved know who the right agents are, who the right management companies are, and the ones who have good reputable businesses.

"I don't believe that prices going up at the turnstiles is the fault of the agencies. The agent's job is to get the best deal for his player and his client and that's what he sets out to do. But the market could change as regards that, and I think agents and players would be realistic towards that change and realise now that clubs are saying that they have no money."

Agents, agrees Robert Segal, will be sensitive to football's changing economic climate, a climate that may soon see wages take a tumble for the first time.

"The game is changing," he says. "And probably the majority of new contracts will be incentive-based, with very big rewards for success. That's the way it's going and if you perform, like in any other business, you get rewarded accordingly."

And as the climate changes, so will the perception of agents. "Clubs want to deal with reputable companies like SEM," says Segal. "I think clubs appreciate that you deal with things properly and in a business-like fashion. And I think players are seeing it from that angle as well. The game, in a nutshell, is changing rapidly."

On Thursday, Wayne Rooney's 17th birthday, the Liverpool Echo's website invited readers to email him their best wishes.

"I've never seen such a fantastic goal," purred Alex from Sydney. "All your dreams are going to come true."

Armed with the signature of football's most sought-after client, Rooney's new representatives hope the same goes for them.