Football Analytics R&D Data Scientist (Hybrid)

The FA; England; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Event tickets

Free lunches

Private medical cover

Pension scheme

25 days annual leave

Hybrid working

Job summary

The FA is seeking a Research & Development Data Scientist to design and build world‑leading statistical and ML models for England teams. You will model diverse football data and deliver data‑driven insights to stakeholders.

Ideal candidates hold a Master’s in a quantitative field with Python expertise, and are ready to work at St. George’s Park or within the FA’s hybrid framework. DBS checks apply as part of safeguarding.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in a highly quantitative field (math/statistics/CS). A PhD is desirable but not essential.
• Strong theoretical grounding in statistics and ML with ability to engage with methodology behind advanced data science techniques.
• Ability to critically evaluate contemporary academic literature.
• Practical data science experience with real-world data; football datasets desirable but not essential.
• Proficiency in Python for statistical modelling.
• Ability to be physically present at St. George's Park.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement world-leading statistical and ML models on football datasets (event, tracking, GPS/performance).
• Experiment with diverse approaches on long-term projects to deliver novel solutions.
• Research emerging methods in statistics, ML/AI, and adjacent fields for football modelling.
• Utilise AI coding agents and tooling to accelerate development.
• Maintain statistical rigour with validated findings for stakeholders.

Skills

Python

Statistics

Machine Learning

Communication

Literature review

Education

Master's degree in quantitative field

PhD desirable

Tools

Google Cloud Platform

GitHub

React

Job description

The FA is seeking a Research & Development Data Scientist to design and build world‑leading statistical and ML models for England teams. You will model diverse football data and deliver data‑driven insights to stakeholders.

Ideal candidates hold a Master’s in a quantitative field with Python expertise, and are ready to work at St. George’s Park or within the FA’s hybrid framework. DBS checks apply as part of safeguarding.