Johannesburg - Mmatsatsi Sefalafala is at a loss for words when she is asked how it feels to have brokered one of the biggest deals in South African football history.
“I have to pinch myself sometimes to make sure it's not a dream, to be honest,” she says.
Sefalafala is the woman behind Percy Tau’s record-breaking move to English Premier League outfit Brighton & Hove Albion (BHAFC).
One of the country's few female football agents, she helped facilitate a £3.1million (about R58.9m) dream move for Tau to the club last month, making it one of the biggest deals in SA football history.
But when she first received the call from Brighton showing interest in her client, she thought it was a joke.
“I remember waking up to a text message from BHAFC asking me when it would be a convenient time for them to call me to discuss Percy Tau because they are very interested in signing him.
“And at the time, I had spent over a year reaching out to various people to get the right networks overseas and registering my details on various football platforms to get an overseas opportunity for Percy.
“I had a picture in my mind of handling big opportunities myself from start to finish. And when I received the call, I just knew it, and I decided to keep to myself. I remember I only broke the news to Percy two days later because I was still trying to process it myself.”
Sefalafala, a Fifa football agent and an attorney, who runs her own practice, Sefalafala Attorneys, says securing Tau’s dream move was the hardest and most complicated deal in her career as a football agent.
“It required a lot of patience, perseverance, discipline and resilience. Initially, I did not think that it would be complicated. However, as the negotiations proceeded, I realised it's actually quite complicated, considering a lot of dynamics which came up in the process.”
Sefalafala faced a number of challenges to secure Tau’s move, especially because she is female. “The challenge is being able to get all parties to reach an agreement and be on the same page. In the process, and especially when you are a woman, you will experience a lot of bullying and unscrupulous conduct by some parties.
“You will suddenly have a lot of people who claim to have a better understanding of how to do massive deals and being offered assistance by people who appear to be genuine, when in fact their plan is to cause disruption and prevent you from reaching your client's goals.
“You will always be at risk of falling into a trap, of succumbing to such conduct if you are not alert and do not have a brave spirit. I personally experienced this during the process.”
Sefalafala has had to work even harder as a football agent because of her gender, she says.
“You have to be resilient and courageous, confident and know how to play the game, like your male counterparts.”
Tau was Sefalafala's first football client since she started her sports agency in 2009, and she is confident that he'll make it in the top tier of English football.
“Not only is he very talented and a hard worker, he is also very confident in his abilities, and is very resilient. His discipline and humility will also be very key in ensuring that he remains there.”
Sefalafala has four other footballers on her books -Hlompho Kekana, Innocent Maela, Given Thibedi and Lefa Hlongwane, but she is now keen to represent rugby players, too.
Now that she is known as the agent who helped secure Tau’s mega-deal, Sefalafala’s phone has been ringing off the hook.
“I do have a few sportsmen interested in being represented by me but, for now, I'd like to keep it close to my chest. My advice to any female is for them to have the passion in doing the football agency work, and not the passion to have fame."