Senior Manager - Commercial Development

Chelsea Football Club; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Chelsea Football Club in London is seeking a Senior Manager, Commercial Development to build and manage a high-quality commercial development pipeline for Football Development. You will identify opportunities, develop robust proposals and provide insight to support revenue growth UK and internationally.

Working with the Head of Sales and cross-club teams, you will develop pricing models, perform due diligence and produce market intelligence while maintaining strong stakeholder relationships.

Qualifications

• Experience of building and managing a commercial, sales or business development pipeline with reliable forecasts.
• Strong research and analytical skills to assess unfamiliar markets and turn evidence into recommendations.
• Commercial and financial capability including pricing models and business cases; explain assumptions clearly.
• Sound judgement and disciplined assessment of opportunity, value and risk.
• Excellent written and verbal communication for senior stakeholders and external partners.
• Strong organisation and attention to detail to manage multiple priorities and records.
• Collaborative approach to build relationships across teams and functions.
• Experience in international business development, licensing, education, sport, or related sector.

Responsibilities

• Build, maintain and manage an accurate commercial pipeline with forecast accuracy.
• Apply a consistent qualification process across channels to focus on high-potential opportunities.
• Lead commercial due diligence against defined criteria for prospective partners.
• Produce market intelligence on priority markets including size, competition, pricing and routes to entry.
• Develop pricing and financial models for licences and B2B opportunities with Finance input.
• Maintain register of Football Development’s commercial assets and available inventory.
• Prepare high-quality proposals and business cases for internal approvals and external discussions.
• Provide regular reporting on pipeline value, quality, conversion and sales cycle.
• Develop templates, processes and tools to support a scalable commercial approach.
• Build strong relationships across Football Development and the Club (Commercial, Finance, Legal, Strategy, Brand, Safeguarding).
• Undertake additional duties to support changing priorities.

Skills

Pipeline management

Market research

Financial modelling

Commercial due diligence

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Project management

International business development

Job description

JOB TITLE: Senior Manager, Commercial Development

DEPARTMENT: Football Development

DIRECT REPORTS: None

LOCATION: Stamford Bridge, London

CONTRACT TYPE: Permanent, Full Time

ROLE PURPOSE:

This role will build and manage a high-quality commercial development pipeline for Football Development. Working closely with the Head of Sales and colleagues across the Club, the role will identify and assess opportunities, develop robust commercial proposals and provide the insight and tools needed to support sustainable revenue growth in the UK and internationally.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Build, maintain and manage an accurate commercial pipeline, ensuring opportunities are clearly recorded, assessed, prioritised and forecast.
• Apply a consistent qualification process to opportunities across all channels and sources, focusing time and resources on those with the strongest potential.
• Lead commercial due diligence on prospective partners, assessing each organisation against agreed commercial, operational, legal, regulatory and safeguarding criteria.
• Produce market intelligence for priority markets, including market size, competitor activity, pricing, the operator landscape, regulatory considerations and routes to entry.
• Develop clear pricing and financial models for licence, direct operation and business-to-business opportunities, working with Finance and relevant stakeholders to test assumptions, margin and risk.
• Maintain a clear register of Football Development’s commercial assets, working with Commercial Strategy and other Club teams to understand and communicate available inventory.
• Prepare high-quality proposals, business cases, partner materials and supporting documentation for internal approval and external discussions.
• Provide regular reporting on pipeline value and quality, conversion, sales cycle, market coverage and reasons for unsuccessful opportunities.
• Develop and continuously improve the templates, processes, controls and guidance that support a consistent and scalable commercial approach.
• Build effective relationships across Football Development and the wider Club, including Commercial, Finance, Legal, Strategy, Brand and Safeguarding teams.
• Undertake additional responsibilities as required to support the changing priorities of Chelsea FC.

SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE:

• Experience of building and managing a commercial, sales or business development pipeline, including qualifying opportunities and maintaining reliable forecasts.
• Strong research and analytical skills, with the ability to assess unfamiliar markets, identify relevant organisations and turn evidence into practical recommendations.
• Commercial and financial capability, including experience of developing pricing models, business cases or deal scenarios and explaining assumptions clearly.
• Sound judgement and a disciplined approach to assessing opportunity, value and risk.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to produce clear, concise materials for senior stakeholders and external partners.
• Strong organisation and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and maintain accurate records.
• A collaborative approach and the confidence to build constructive relationships across different teams and professional disciplines.
• Comfortable working in a developing environment and creating practical processes and tools where these are not yet established
• Experience of international business development, licensing, education, sport, football development or another relevant sector.
• Knowledge of partnership assessment, commercial due diligence or working across different regulatory environments.

MEASURES OF PERFORMANCE:

• Pipeline quality and forecast accuracy: Opportunities are consistently recorded, appropriately qualified and supported by realistic values and timescales.
• Conversion: Qualified opportunities progress effectively towards signed, commercially sound agreements.
• Sales cycle: Opportunities move through each stage efficiently, with delays, dependencies and next steps clearly managed.
• Market coverage: Priority markets are assessed to an agreed standard and supported by a relevant, evidence-based prospect list.
• Due diligence and risk management: Prospective partners are assessed against agreed criteria before proposals or agreements progress.
• Commercial capability: Reporting, templates, playbooks and market information are accurate, accessible and used consistently across the team.
• Stakeholder confidence: Internal stakeholders receive clear, timely and well-supported commercial recommendations.
• To embody the club’s BLUE behaviours (Brave, Lead, Unity, Edge) in the approach to work and interaction with others
• To adhere to the club’s policies and procedures, including Health & Safety, Financial Authorisation, Confidentiality and GDPR.
• To act as an ambassador for diversity, equality, and inclusion, and demonstrate a positive commitment by treating others fairly in line with our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy and reporting any acts of discrimination through appropriate channels
• To create a safe environment and act to protect all young people and vulnerable adults that are either in your care or attending club premises, and report any concerns to the Safeguarding Lead
• To report any misconduct or suspected misconduct to the HR Department.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

At Chelsea we recognise that the diversity of our people is one of our greatest strengths and we are taking positive action to ensure our existing colleagues and job applicants can fully be themselves and bring their own unique experiences and perspectives to Chelsea FC. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity.

If you need reasonable adjustments made to the recruitment process, please reach out to your recruiter, who will be able to advise and support you.

Chelsea FC is fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all children, young people and adults at risk (vulnerable groups). We therefore require all successful applicants to complete a DBS Check prior to starting employment. Depending on the role, successful applicants may also be required to undergo other child protection screening where appropriate.