Partnerships Director

DFL; London; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading sports organization seeks a Partnerships Director to shape their sponsorship strategy, drive revenue growth, and enhance brand partnerships. This role demands a visionary leader with expertise in partnerships, market insights, and the ability to inspire teams within a complex matrix structure.

Qualifications

• Track record in sponsorship or partnerships.
• Deep understanding of sponsorship ecosystem.
• Experience leading high-value partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Develop and drive the sponsorship strategy.
• Deliver revenue growth and manage budget.
• Lead and inspire a high-performing partnerships team.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Commercial acumen

Interpersonal skills

Analytical mindset

Leadership

Job description

About the role

Weare looking for a forward-thinking, insight-driven leader focused on delivering partner value to shape and execute The Jockey Club’s group-wide sponsorship strategy. As Partnerships Director, you will lead with vision, drive sustainable revenue growth, strengthen relationships with high-value brand partners, and position The Jockey Club as a premier rights-holder

Operating within a matrix structure, you will lead a central team while working closely with regional racecourses to align national strategy with local execution. Your role will be pivotal in unifying our approach, maximising the value of our sponsorship assets, and elevating the racegoer experience through innovative brand partnerships.

This is a unique opportunity for a visionary and commercially minded leader to redefine the role of sponsorship in sport, balancing creativity, operational rigour, and strong stakeholder engagement.

About The Jockey Club

The Jockey Club stages thrilling sporting occasions and live events nationwide including The Guinea’s The Grand National & The Cheltenham Festival. Owning & operating 15 course’s, millions of people every year enjoy the special experiences we offer through racing, music, food and entertainment on raceday’s and beyond.

As the largest commercial group in British racing, we are guided by our mission to act for the long term good of the sport. Every penny we make goes back into racing to promote excellence within Britain’s second biggest spectator sport. Our people are what makes this possible

At The Jockey Club people are at the heart of what we do and drive our success. We are inclusive and actively seek to attract people with unique backgrounds and perspectives. Diverse, collaborative teams are pivotal to our success and support the potential and growth of all our people.

About what the Partnerships Director will do

• Set the vision: Develop and drive a bold, insight-led sponsorship strategy aligned with The Jockey Club’s brand and commercial goals.
• Grow revenue: Own and deliver the Group Partnerships budget, consistently driving revenue growth and long-term value.
• Elevate partnerships: Position The Jockey Club as the go-to partner for brands seeking passionate, diverse, and engaged audiences.
• Innovate offerings: Evolve rights packages to reflect digital trends, sustainability, and CSR priorities, staying ahead of sponsor needs.
• Win new business: Lead strategic targeting of new sectors using data, trends, and audience insights to fuel a strong sales pipeline.
• Drive excellence: Embed best-in-class account management to ensure flawless delivery and long-term partner retention.
• Lead collaboration: Align central and regional teams under a unified strategy, ensuring consistent execution and scalable success.
• Inspire teams: Lead and develop a high-performing Partnerships team with a culture of creativity, collaboration, and accountability.

About you

• A strategic and commercially minded leader with a track record of delivering results in sponsorship, partnerships, or brand marketing.
• Deep understanding of the sponsorship ecosystem and emerging trends across sport, digital, and consumer engagement.
• Proven experience leading high-value sponsorship or commercial partnerships in sport, entertainment, media, or similarly complex sectors.
• Demonstrated ability to define and deliver long-term sponsorship strategies that drive revenue growth and brand impact.
• Strong understanding of sponsorship valuation, rights packaging, and ROI frameworks.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing teams, ideally across central and regional or matrixed environments.
• Experience operating in complex or matrix organisations, bringing stakeholders together behind a shared vision.
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills, with the ability to build trust and alignment at all levels of the organisation.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to translate data into actionable insights that shape targeting, valuation, and partner strategy.
• An empowering leadership style - able to bring out the best in others while driving pace and accountability.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build trust and credibility with partners, internal teams, and external stakeholders

If you think you have everything we’re looking for and more, then we’d love to hear from you. Don’t hang around, our closing date for this vacancy is 27^th June but we reserve the right to bring this forward if we have many applications.