Former Stuttgart sports director Sven Mislintat is threatened with trouble at his new club Ajax Amsterdam because of a possible conflict of interest in the move of Croatian national soccer player Borna Sosa. The background is Mislintat’s participation in the football data analysis company Matchmetrics. The player consulting agency AKA Global GmbH has also been involved in this company since the summer and recently arranged Sosa’s move from VfB to Ajax for a transfer fee of between eight and ten million euros. The Dutch broadcaster NOS highlighted Mislintat’s connections.
The Ajax club management is now also concerned about the case. In a statement, the Dutch record champions emphasized that the club was not aware of AKA’s involvement in Matchmetrics and that there would be an independent investigation. “As a player signed by Ajax was looked after by AKA Global this summer, the club is continuing to examine this and is receiving support from external consultants,” it said. Mislintat told the club that it would provide full cooperation, including passing on all relevant documents. Mislintat has been Ajax’s technical director since the spring. He had previously worked for VfB for around three years. During this time, Sosa also played for VfB. When he moved to Amsterdam, Mislintat’s stake in Matchmetrics was the subject of contract discussions. A contractual agreement was also made about this. Mislintat is already being criticized in Amsterdam because of its purchasing policy. In the summer, around a dozen players came to Ajax for over 100 million euros, and in return the club also earned 150 million euros through player transfers. The start of the season was unsuccessful, with five points from four games Ajax is only twelfth in the honorary division.
