Former football agent Jonathan Barnett is facing a series of serious allegations in the United States. Barnett and his former agency CAA have denied all allegations.
As reported by The Guardian, Barnett is being sued in civil court in California by a woman accusing him of rape, torture and human trafficking. The unnamed woman claims that Barnett tortured her by keeping her as a sex slave for six years, during which he sexually assaulted her, raped her more than 39 times, and threatened the lives of her children as well as her own.
The allegations say that the woman was trafficked from Australia to the United Kingdom in 2017, and that CAA (Creative Artists Agency), assisted in him in keeping her as a sex slave.
Barnett and CAA response
Barnett and CAA have denied the claims, and the former’s lawyers released the following statement from the 75-year-old.
“The claims made in [the] complaint against me have no basis in reality and are untrue. We will vigorously defend this lawsuit through the appropriate legal process. I am looking forward to being entirely vindicated and exonerated.”
CAA say they first became aware of the allegations in January 2024, a month before Barnett retired last year.
“While the complaint attempts to connect these allegations to CAA’s business, Ms Doe has never been an employee, consultant, or contractor of CAA, ICM, or Stellar, nor has she ever had any business connection to CAA, ICM, or Stellar,” they said.
Alleged victim says CAA were complicit
The alleged victim claims that CAA were complicit by arranging accommodation and making substantial payments to her between 2017 and 2023, saying that they ‘should have known’. They first met Barnett in the 1990s, and reconnected in 2017 via LinkedIn.
The alleged victim then claims that Barnett encouraged her to move to London with the promise of a job, accommodation and paid education for her to children. When they met at a hotel in the British capital, Barnett allegedly raped her, and began making threats were she to report the incident. Further abuse included leaving the alleged victim tied up overnight without food or water, demanding sexual videos, kicking her in the ribs and making her lick his shoes.
Barnett brokered Gareth Bale’s agent to Real Madrid
Barnett was a well-known football agent, who founded the Stellar Group, that were bought by ICM and eventually acquired by CAA. His biggest client was former Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur star Gareth Bale, negotiating a €101m move to the Santiago Bernabeu – at the time a world record fee. CAA currently have the likes of Omar Marmoush, Jack Grealish, Eduardo Camavinga, Ibrahima Konate, Alex Baena and Fermin Lopez on their books.
