The Agent: My 40-Year Career Making Deals and Changing the Game

A New York Times bestseller!

The real-life "Jerry Maguire," superagent Leigh Steinberg shares his personal stories on the rise, fall, and redemption of his game-changing career in the high-stakes world of professional sports

Leigh Steinberg is renowned as one of the greatest sports agents in history, representing such All-Pro clients as Troy Aikman, Bruce Smith, and Ben Roethlisberger. Over one particular seven-year stretch, Steinberg represented the top NFL Draft pick an unheard of six times. Director Cameron Crowe credits Steinberg as a primary inspiration for the titular character in Jerry Maguire, even hiring Steinberg as a consultant on the film. Lightyears ahead of his contemporaries, he expanded his players' reach into entertainment. Already the bestselling author of a business book on negotiation, the original superagent is now taking readers behind the closed doors of professional sports, recounting priceless stories, like how he negotiated a $26.5 million package for Steve Young―the biggest ever at the time―and how he passed on the chance to represent Peyton Manning.

Beginning with his early days as a student leader at Berkeley, Steinberg details his illustrious rise into pro sports fame, his decades of industry dominance, and how he overcame a series of high-profile struggles to regain his sobriety and launch his comeback. This riveting story takes readers inside the inner circle of top-notch agents and players through the visionary career of Leigh Steinberg, the pre-eminent superagent of our time.

LEIGH STEINBERG founded his sports law practice in 1975 and has since represented over 150 professional athletes. Currently President and CEO of Steinberg Sports and Entertainment and an advocate for player safety, he contributes a weekly column to Forbes and The Huffington. The author of the bestselling books Winning With Integrity and The Agent, Steinberg lives in Newport Beach, CA.