Josh Carabatsakis is considered an up and comer amongst CPL circles. Now, he's left the agency he built to help Valour FC push for history

Before he was a football agent, Winnipeg-native Josh Carabatsakis was a player.

And, like any athlete, Carabatsakis believed in himself. He had represented the province of Manitoba on the pitch; he had played at a high level locally. He believed, with the Canadian Premier League (CPL)  set to launch in his hometown, that his chance at joining the professional ranks was at hand.

“I thought I was going to walk onto the open trials, I thought I was going to be one of the guys that gets signed and do what Raphael Ohin has done for the last six or seven years,” Carabatsakis told The Wanderers Notebook in an exclusive interview. “Looking back, I know it couldn’t have been further from reality.”

A serious anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury derailed Carabatsakis’ plan before it could start and propelled him down a very different path; he’s grown from player to agent and, most recently, joined Valour as their director of football operations.

Carabatsakis is only 28-years old and, in many ways, is considered an up and comer amongst CPL circles. He’s shown initiative through launching his own player agency, Eikon Sports Group, in 2019 and has made a name for himself in the Canadian football landscape.

“As crazy as it sounds, probably one of the best things that happened to me was when I tore my ACL,” said Carabatsakis. “I know and remind myself every morning how lucky I am to be working in professional sports, let alone in my city in the sport I love.”

Eikon Sports began, in spirit, during Carabatsakis’s rehabilitation.

Bedridden, he started following and identifying players who could be part of the CPL’s inaugural season. Carabatsakis then began posting his findings on social media and, bit by bit, he developed a following. Many of his predictions proved correct.

Eventually, an agent from Toronto reached out and together they organized the first-ever professional football showcase in Winnipeg late in 2018.

“That gave me my first insight in player recruitment,” said Carabatsakis, adding that many of the lessons he learned at that first event remained true throughout his time as an agent.

“You’ve got a lot of competitive, combative guys and managing those relationships can be hard because, not unlike myself, they’re always chomping at the bit to get to the next level. And if that doesn’t happen right away, how do you maintain that relationship? (It’s about) keeping them believing in the process and that was something I think I was able to do well as an agent.”

Many of the CPL’s star players have been Eikon clients over the years, with the agency boasting upwards of 20 players at any given time. Be it Myer Bevan, Ollie Bassett, Kris Twardek, Matteo de Brienne or Massimo Ferrin, Carabatsakis represented some of the best talent the CPL has had to offer.

Some highlights as a player agent, noted Carabatsakis, include securing de Brienne’s transfer from Atlético Ottawa to Sweden this off-season and having his players — Bevan and Bassett — as the Golden Boot winners for 2023.

Over the last two years, Eikon represented more players in CPL than any other agency.

Valour head coach Phil Dos Santos and Carabatsakis have long had a friendly relationship and, late in 2024, the idea was broached about bringing in some front office help.

Carabatsakis said he was interested to work for his hometown club after building his business up to a good place.

“It was a very difficult decision and one I’ve described as bittersweet,” he said.

However, with many of his players on good footing, be it Moses Dyer’s move to Ireland or goalkeeper Yann Fillion’s signing in Malta, Carabatsakis said the timing was right.

And the expectations have been clear since he walked into the door at Valour: Carabatsakis, along with the rest of Valour’s staff, are looking to take a step forward.

“My goal, and I think everyone’s goal, needs to be making the playoffs happen this year,” he said.

As director of football operations, Carabatsakis’s role includes responsibilities on both the operations and football side. Recruitment is at the top of his list.

And Carabatsakis has wasted no time, having helped Valour with several off-season recruitments. One of his former clients, Twardek, was a marquee signing. A few weeks ago, he helped Dos Santos zero in on full-back Zachary Fernandez, who remained unsigned. And the club also recently brought in U-21 forward Miles Morgan to bolster their attack.

“I’ve been familiar with Miles for quite a while. Even as an agent, he was a guy I would have liked to have represented. When we got the opportunity to bring him in, that was an absolute no-brainer for a U-21 youth international, a guy with a lot of potential,” explained Carabatsakis.

“This summer and into 2026, I think a lot of my role will be helping with (recruitment) and continuing to build a roster to be competitive and hopefully be a perennial playoff team.”

It's been several years since Carabatsakis first made his foray into being a player agent. Both himself and the league have undergone a lot of change.

But one thing that hasn't changed his his belief that he can help contribute to Canadian football and his thanks for being part of the growth of the beautiful game in Canada.

“I’m just thankful to everyone involved with the league, especially those involved in the inaugural season and the years before that, to make this happen, I don’t know what I would be doing if this league didn’t exist," he said.  "When that opportunity (to join Valour) came up, I knew I wanted to do it.”

Photo Credit: Valour FC