Monday Evening - Marco Benetti's Office, Florence

Marco's phone wouldn't stop buzzing.

The screen lit up again—another notification, another message, another email—and he set down his espresso with a sigh because this had been happening since Sunday night when Demien's rainbow flick went viral across every football platform in Europe.

+39 348 5672341: Hi Marco, this is Alessandro from Diesel Italia. We saw Demien Walter's debut - the kid has style. Would love to discuss having him model our new youth streetwear line. Coffee this week?

Marco forwarded it to his marketing team with a quick note—Fashion inquiry, handle initial contact—and moved to the next message.

+39 02 8934 5621: Marco, Luca from Panini here. That rainbow flick is everywhere. We want Demien for our Serie A sticker collection special edition cards. Can we talk licensing?

Another forward to marketing; his phone buzzed twice more before he even finished typing.

+39 335 8872 443: Ciao Marco, this is Gianna from Parmigiano Reggiano consortium. We're looking for young Italian football talent for our regional campaign. Demien would be perfect as a local hero. Interested?

Marco smiled at that one—local cheese consortium reaching out—and forwarded it with a note: Regional endorsement, low priority but respond politely.

+44 20 7946 8523: Marco, James from Monster Energy UK. That kid is a highlight reel. Want to get him in our athlete program. Gaming content too if he's interested. Let's chat?

The office felt smaller than usual tonight, the desk lamp casting shadows across stacks of paperwork that needed reviewing, contracts that needed signing, and now this flood of interest in a player who'd had exactly one professional match.

One hell of a match, Marco thought, and he couldn't help but smile.

He scrolled through more messages, each one representing a different industry trying to capitalize on viral fame:

+41 22 908 0000: Marco, Vincent from TAG Heuer Switzerland. We're expanding our football ambassador program. Demien's composure at 18 caught our attention. Would he be interested in luxury timepiece partnership?

+39 02 7209 5555: Buongiorno Marco, Filippo from Replay Jeans. That post-match interview? Perfect for our authentic Italian youth campaign. Let's discuss creative collaboration.

+44 161 444 1990: Hey Marco, Dave from Hyperion Gaming Peripherals. The kid's Gen Z, right? We want him for our FIFA esports crossover campaign. Gamers love footballers who can actually play.

Marco forwarded each one systematically—fashion to marketing, watches to his endorsement specialist, gaming to the digital media team—because Demien was eighteen and needed guidance on which opportunities built brands versus which ones just paid quick money.

His laptop screen showed the highlights for probably the twentieth time today—the rainbow flick, the volley, the celebration with Isabella through the fence—and the view counter kept climbing, currently sitting at 9.2 million across all platforms.

Nine million people had watched his client score one of the goals of the season.

His phone buzzed again; he glanced at it, ready to forward another inquiry, but this message made him pause.

Adidas - Giuseppe Lombardi: Marco, Giuseppe here from Adidas Italy. We've been very impressed with Demien's debut performance. We'd like to set up a meeting to discuss potential partnership opportunities. Would Demien be available sometime this week or next? We're flexible on timing.

Marco sat back in his chair, fingers drumming against the armrest; Adidas wasn't some mid-tier brand sending generic interest messages, this was one of the big three, the company that sponsored Messi, Benzema, Pogba, and half of Real Madrid's roster.

He opened his notes app and typed: Adidas - serious interest, wants meeting, flexible timing.

Before he could set the phone down, another message arrived.

Puma - Elena Ricci: Hello Marco, I'm reaching out from Puma's talent acquisition team. Demien Walter's performance on Sunday was exceptional and we believe he could be a great fit for our brand. Would you be open to scheduling a meeting to explore partnership possibilities? Please let us know your availability.

Marco's eyebrows rose; Puma too, another major player, the brand behind Neymar, Griezmann, and Manchester City's entire kit deal.

Puma - serious interest, wants meeting, asking availability.

Two of the three biggest sportswear brands in the world, both reaching out within hours of each other, both professional and direct rather than sending junior marketing staff to test the waters.

This was real interest, the kind that could change a career trajectory if handled properly.

But Marco hadn't told Demien yet, and the reason sat in the chaos currently consuming his office and inbox—thirty-seven video submissions from aspiring players since Sunday, all asking for representation, all citing Demien's success as proof that Marco Benetti knew how to build careers.

His email inbox showed 142 unread messages, most of them inquiries from aspiring players asking for representation after seeing Demien's success, congratulations from contacts across Italian football, and marketing teams pitching brand deals.

His desk held Luca's loan contract documents from Atalanta that needed final review before the Braga discussions Thursday, plus the brand inquiry spreadsheet his marketing assistant had compiled showing which companies were serious versus which were just chasing viral fame.

Luca's loan move to Portugal was progressing exactly as Marco had hoped; he'd spent the past week in discussions with Braga's sporting director about Luca's suitability for their system, confirming the winger's interest in moving abroad for regular playing time, and providing performance data that showed Luca could handle the step up from Serie B to Primeira Liga football.

The formal loan offer would go to Atalanta on Thursday—Braga submitting terms directly to the club including loan fee structure, wage contributions, and whether they wanted an option-to-buy clause—and once Atalanta approved the framework, Marco's job would be negotiating Luca's personal contract terms to ensure the move benefited his client's development.

One client going to Portugal on loan, another one blowing up across Europe after one debut, Marco thought, and he felt the weight of both opportunities pressing on his shoulders because timing mattered in this business and windows closed as fast as they opened.

His laptop dinged—new email—and Marco almost ignored it since he'd been ignoring most emails for the past six hours, but something about the sender made him click.

From: Sarah Kim ([email protected])

Subject: Partnership Inquiry - Demien Walter

Time: 18:47 CET

Dear Mr. Benetti,

My name is Sarah Kim and I'm reaching out on behalf of Nike Football's European Athlete Relations division. We've been following Demien Walter's recent performances and were particularly impressed by his Serie A debut this past Sunday.

Nike would like to express our interest in exploring partnership opportunities with Demien. We believe his playing style, marketability, and career trajectory align well with our brand values and our upcoming Next Gen program launching this fall.

Would you be available to schedule a formal meeting to discuss potential collaboration? We're flexible on timing and location, and can arrange for our senior team to meet at your convenience.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Sarah Kim

Executive Assistant to Marcus Marino

Senior VP, Athlete Relations - Nike Football Europe

Marco read the email twice, slowly, his expression shifting from professional interest to genuine satisfaction.

Nike.

Not just Nike, but a direct outreach from the Senior VP's office, the kind of contact that meant someone high up in the organization had made Demien a priority rather than routing him through junior talent scouts and regional representatives.

Adidas, Puma, and now Nike—all three of the biggest sportswear companies in the world, all reaching out within forty-eight hours of a single debut performance.

Marco leaned back in his chair and allowed himself a moment to just breathe, to let the weight of what this meant settle properly in his chest.

Marco had started his agency with Demien as his first client, a kid rejected by Fiorentina who nobody else would touch, and he'd done it because Isabella was like family and because something in Demien's eyes during their first meeting had reminded Marco why he'd left his comfortable job at a bigger agency to build something of his own.

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