Raiola represented players like Paul Pogba and Erling Haaland
© Stefano Guidi / Getty Images
One of football’s most well-known power brokers, Mino Raiola, has died following an illness according to reports coming from his native Italy. He was 54.
Raiola represented several of the sport’s biggest stars throughout his career as one of football’s most powerful agents, negotiating some of the biggest transfers in the history of the game.
It was announced on his Twitter page that he had been hospitalized in January and had undergone surgery, but the exact nature of his illness was not revealed.
BREAKING NEWS:Italian football agent Mino Raiola died after illness.He was agent of Ibrahimovic, Pogba, Haaland etc
— Tancredi Palmeri (@tancredipalmeri) April 28, 2022
It was reported at the time that his condition wasn’t considered serious and that he would return to work after a brief period of recuperation.
However, a tweet from Italian football journalist Tancredi Palmeri on Thursday confirmed that Raiola had passed away.
“Breaking news,” wrote Palmeri. “Italian football agent Mino Raiola died after illness. He was agent of Ibrahimovic, Pogba, Haaland etc.”
Raiola was born in Italy but emigrated to the Netherlands with his parents when he was infant, where he eventually began working in his family’s pizzeria in Haarlem. He learned several languages while there and would later claim to have become a self-made millionaire while still a teenager.
His became associated with the youth team of HFC Haarlem in 1987 at the age of 18 and would eventually use his contacts in Dutch football to help broker the transfer of players like Bryan Roy, Wim Jonk and Dennis Bergkamp to various Italian clubs.
Raiola’s stature began to grow exponentially within football and he would soon rise to prominence as one of the most influential and powerful agents in the game.
It was estimated by Forges that Raiola’s personal wealth was in excess of £60 million ($75 million).
Among the high-profile transfer he would negotiate were Paul Pogba’s record-breaking move from Juventus to Manchester United, and the transfer of Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt from Ajax to Juventus.
Perhaps Raiola’s most prominent client today, Erling Haaland, is thought to be in discussions for a lucrative transfer from Borussia Dortmund to Manchester City – though it remains uncertain to what extend Raiola’s passing might impact the potential move.
Paul Pogba is also expected to move from Manchester United upon the expiration of his contract this summer.
