From 1,000 Rejections to the Face of Football Manager 2027: Aggy's Unlikely Rise

• Football Manager 2027 cover model Agbor-ya Ojong, known as Aggy, opens up on rejection, Bukayo Saka, Football Manager and his refusal to be boxed in.

• The 22-year-old model and actor of Cameroonian descent has become one of the faces of Football Manager 2027.

• He tells Pulse Sports how years of rejection, football shoots and persistence led to a moment he never expected.

Before modelling, Aggy pursued football seriously and still plays semi-professionally. He has appeared in the Bukayo Saka x Fiverr commercial, Netflix productions and music videos, but says becoming part of the Football Manager franchise was a complete surprise.

Agbor-ya Ojong did not expect to become the face of Football Manager 2027. In fact, when the 22-year-old arrived for what he believed was another football-themed modelling shoot, he had no idea the game’s producers were waiting for him.

The London-based model, actor and musician, known simply as Aggy, is of Cameroonian descent and has built his career through modelling, content creation and acting. 

He previously appeared in the Bukayo Saka x Fiverr commercial, Sex Education season four and NSG’s “Lonely” music video.

But Football Manager 2027, which launches globally on November 10, has given him his biggest platform yet.

Aggy said the opportunity began with an ordinary email from a production company. They told him they wanted someone who looked like a footballer, but did not reveal the project.

"I received an email saying it was a football-themed shoot,” he said. “They wanted someone who looks like they’re a football player. I said yeah, I’m down, I’m available for the shoot."

Only after arriving at the studio did he learn it was for Football Manager. He was then asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement and keep the project secret, even from his mother, until the official artwork was released.

My mum would be great because my mum supports me a lot, but my mum just doesn’t understand that kind of stuff. African parents and stuff - she doesn’t understand what’s a Football Manager. Maybe my dad would know. I like to share my wins with her because she’s always very happy for me. But she wouldn’t have understood like that.” 

Even after the shoot, Aggy refused to celebrate too early. He had experienced enough uncertainty in the industry to know that a booked job does not always make the final cut.

“To be honest, I didn’t really call anyone and tell them. It happened so quickly, it didn’t even feel real. It was the kind of thing where I was just like, ‘I’ll believe it when I see it. When this thing comes out and I’m on it, I’ll believe it. " Because a lot of times in this industry you shoot something, the time comes for it to be released and it’s somebody else instead, or your part got cut out.” 

“Imagine if they decided “nah, we’re not using this. It didn’t have to make the final cut,” so I refrained from even telling anybody. I wanted to be like, “Nah, I’ll just believe it when I see it.” I don’t even want to talk before it’s done because this is a bit crazy - a game that millions of people play.” 

Aggy’s journey has not been smooth. He says he began emailing potential opportunities at 17, often without response, and faced his lowest point at 19 when nothing seemed to be working.

Rather than quit, he kept applying, networking and taking whatever work came his way. He believes that persistence, positioning and luck all played a role in his rise.

“What are the benefits of quitting and what are the benefits of carrying on?,” he said. “The benefits of carrying on outweigh the benefits of quitting to me. So I just decided, you know what, why not just keep going, man.”

“One thing that some people need to know: they see this Football Manager thing — that’s probably one of my biggest wins to date right now — but people don’t understand that the amount of rejections you face before something like that is crazy. The amount of rejections, it was unreasonable for me to even keep going with the amount of rejections that you face. For every Football Manager, you have about 1,000 rejections before that. Crazy. A thousand times I’ve been told no and you still turn up.”

He is equally blunt about the creative industry: “It’s about who you know. There’s too many talented people that I’ve seen get overlooked. And I’ve been one of them before — still one of them to a certain extent in some aspects.” 

“It’s more about who you know, to be honest. Knowing the right person can compensate for a lack of talent, but having a bundle of talent doesn’t guarantee you motion. You need a lot of networking, luck… put yourself in the right position. Sometimes in order to get into the door, pester people - keep knocking. That goes a long way.” 

Aggy believes his real football background helped him stand out. He played football seriously before moving into modelling and still plays semi-professionally.

His first acting job was as a footballer extra on a Netflix show, where he was used to perform football actions for an actor who struggled with basic ball control.

“They had to get me to take the shots for him and do some certain things, use me as a kind of double,” he said. “So yeah, I think what stood me out was that they were looking for somebody that looks like they can actually be a footballer for Football Manager — someone young, athletic. People mistake me for a footballer sometimes. I’ve spent a lot of time on football. 

That experience, combined with previous football shoots, made him a convincing fit for Football Manager’s football-first identity. The game has built its reputation around tactics, transfers, squad management and the pressure of decision-making rather than simply controlling players on the pitch.

Aggy does not want Football Manager 2027 to define him. Alongside modelling, he is pursuing music and has signed a publishing deal. He also appeared in a film playing the piano, a role filmed two years ago but released shortly before the Football Manager announcement.

“I want them to remember me for being multifaceted, never being boxed in,” he said. “When the game is gone… to be honest, I think I’m going to go very far. I want them to look back and be like, “Oh, remember when he was on the cover of this? Look how far he’s come since then.”

His Football Manager announcement post has already attracted more than 2,000 organic likes, while a version featuring his own song has reached nearly 50,000 views.

For now, though, he is enjoying the moment, and the fact that his mother is finally beginning to understand exactly what Football Manager is.