Commercial & Partnerships Lead, – Women’s Professional Game, FA
Football Association

In what is an exciting time for the Women’s Professional Domestic Game in England, the 22/23 season has seen record attendances and viewership of Women’s professional football in this country and the domestic leagues continue to grow at an unprecedented pace.

Since professionalisation in 2018, the Women’s domestic leagues have seen incredible growth under the leadership of the Football Association. At this transformational time for the game, we are looking to develop an independent structure that will allow the leagues to transition to a NewCo over the course of the next season.

We are searching for a Commercial and Partnerships Lead, who will play a key senior management role with Barclay’s Women’s Super League (BWSL) and Barclay’s Women’s Championship (BWC) to drive forward commercial programme during a period of transformational growth in the Women’s Professional Game.

You will lead the management and delivery of the commercial and partnerships programme as part of the women’s professional game division as it continues to transition to a NewCo, working closely with other FA Commercial, Marketing and wider teams.

We are searching for an individual who is passionate about the growth of Women’s football and will provide effective leadership for the Commercial and Partnerships Team.

Note: Women’s Professional Game includes the Barclays Women’s Super League (BWSL), Barclays Women’s Championship (BWC) and the Continental Tyres League Cup.

What will you be doing?

COMMERCIAL:

• Lead a team in developing and delivering the commercial strategy and programme for the Women’s Professional Game (WPG)
• Develop strong relationships with commercial contacts within BWSL and BWC clubs including attendance/input into BWSL & BWC Commercial Committee meetings.
• Manage the ongoing consultation with BWSL and BWC clubs, specifically in relation to core terms and commercial rights of WPG governance – including Club Licence, Commercial Regulations and Broadcast Regulations.
• Planning and management of commercial aspects of the Club Licence and Commercial Regulations.
• Support in the commercial elements of digital and data development plans.
• Work alongside all relevant internal teams (i.e. WPG Senior Leadership Team, league operations, broadcast, partnerships, communications, marketing) to implement commercial rights programme for BWSL and BWC and ensure delivery of rights for key stakeholders.
• Oversee liaison with BWSL and BWC clubs (General Managers/CMK contacts) on management and delivery of club-led commercial rights for WPG partners.
• Full review and rewording of commercial elements of BWSL and BWC Club Licence Application (for teams seeking promotion) and inclusion on Promotion Application Technical Panel for review of commercial aspects of applications.
• Provide support to BWC and FA Women’s National League (FAWNL) clubs for the development of commercial plans as preparation for transition into BWSL and BWC.
• Oversee ground-dressing programme for the WPG delivery including budgets, tender for procurement etc.
  

PARTNERSHIPS:

• Drive value for the WPG’s portfolio of commercial partners supporting activation programmes and ensuring alignment to the strategic priorities of the WPG.
• Oversee WPG commercial partnerships team ensuring efficient client servicing and delivery of rights.
• Manage the insights and research support for current partners, renewals and future partnership discussions.
• Support the delivery partnership renewals with key partners as relevant within each sponsorship term.
• Oversee budget requirements across each partner liaising with other teams as required.
  

GENERAL:

• Champion world-class service delivery of league and club services; obtain customer feedback and make any improvements as necessary.
• Lead, manage and coach the team effectively, ensuring all staff have regular personal development reviews, clear objectives and individual personal development plans.
• Develop an annual business plan and budget for women’s professional game policy, licensing, and compliance, ensuring prioritisation and allocation of major tasks and that all risks are identified, and any mitigating actions put in place.
• Execute additional tasks as required to meet FA Group changing priorities.
• Comply with all company policies and procedures to ensure the highest standards of health, safety and wellbeing can be maintained.
  What are we looking for?

Essential for the role:

• Experience in developing & delivering commercial strategies and programmes (sports focus)
• Proven experience in leading and developing brand partnership activation plans and campaigns.
• Excellent relationship & stakeholder management skills at all levels that can be used effectively both internally and externally.
• Strong leadership and influencing skills.
• Excellent project management skills.
• Experience working with cross-functional project teams.
• Proven experience working with sponsor agencies.
• Proven experience in sponsorship programme creation and sale/negotiation.
• Proven experience working with commercial contracts and legal teams.
• Proven experience in managing and supporting direct reports and channelling their professional growth.
• Skills and experience working alongside Marketing, Brand and Communications teams.
• Strategic thinker able to consider wider and longer-term impacts.
• Experience in sponsorship research and insight measurement Knowledge of football, sport and sponsorship markets.
  

Beneficial to have:

• Relevant qualification/degree.
• Interest and knowledge of women’s football.
• Good contacts and relationships.
• Experience working with broadcasters and the media.
• Understanding of the digital marketing landscape.
• Strong presentation and reporting skills.
  

What’s in it for you?

We are committed to ensuring everyone can flourish in their roles, to achieve this we have unique office spaces under the arch of the iconic Wembley National Stadium, which is the home of English Football. We are also delighted to offer a world-class, Elite Performance Centre, St. George’s Park in Staffordshire which is an exceptional setting to develop and inspire high-performing England teams and leaders.

We pride ourselves in offering a competitive salary as well as great opportunities to develop and grow in your role. But that is not all; we also have a range of exciting benefits, some of which can be found below:

• Access to event day tickets at Wembley Stadium, alongside a host of regular internal events throughout the season encouraging you to connect and learn with your colleagues and look after your mental health and wellbeing.
• Free, nutritious lunches, at Wembley Stadium and St. George’s Park.
• Free private medical cover.
• A contributory pension scheme.
• An additional Thank You days leave, volunteering days as well as 25 days annual leave.
• A hybrid working model offering flexibility on where you work.
  

For more information on what it is like to work at The FA, please visit our FA Careers page,

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