U.K. soccer star Jermain Defoe is joining Toronto FC because Drake told him to

Here’s something to add to Drake‘s growing list of accomplishments, along with international stardom and mastery of footwear design: he’s developing a knack for persuasion. How else to explain the fact that a phone call from him was, according to the U.K.‘s Daily Mirror, a decisive factor in the success of Toronto FC’s campaign to woo British soccer player Jermain Defoe to our city’s faltering squad?

Defoe, who at 31 is already nearing retirement age in the U.K., will reportedly receive more than $150,000 a week, plus two houses and unlimited airfare for himself and his family, after he makes his expected move to Hogtown. Toronto FC officials have yet to confirm the long-rumoured arrangement, but the Globe reports that insiders consider the deal to be virtually done. The Tottenham Hotspur player will be joining a team renowned for its losing record—but we guess a phone call from Drake is all it takes to soothe the ego of an aging professional athlete. Suddenly the rapper’s “global ambassador” gig with the Toronto Raptors doesn’t seem like such a weird concept.