The Real Bosses: Meet Every Premier League Club's Top Football Decision-Maker

While managers grab the headlines and face the heat, the true architects of Premier League clubs operate largely out of sight. Sporting directors, technical directors, presidents of football operations—whatever the title—these are the individuals and committees orchestrating recruitment, shaping squads, and ultimately deciding a club's long-term trajectory.

You've probably never heard of most of them. Spot one in the street and you'd struggle to recognise them. Yet their fingerprints are all over every major decision at their respective clubs.

Arsenal – Andrea Berta

The Gunners turned to Italian experience when Andrea Berta, 54, arrived as sporting director in 2025, replacing Edu. His résumé reads like a masterclass in European football administration: banking background followed by roles at Carpenedolo, Parma, and Genoa before a 12-year stint at Atlético Madrid. There, he progressed from technical director to sporting director in 2017, helping orchestrate the recruitment of Antoine Griezmann, Rodri, and Jan Oblak. Under Diego Simeone's management, Berta's influence shaped a side that won two La Liga titles, the Europa League, and reached two Champions League finals.

Aston Villa – Roberto Olabe

Villa have taken a different route since Monchi's departure. Owners Wes Edens, Nassef Sawiris, and Michael Angelakis have placed their faith in manager Unai Emery, positioning him as the central figure rather than installing a traditional gatekeeper between themselves and the dugout. Roberto Olabe, 58, arrived as president of football operations in late 2025 from Real Sociedad, where his sporting director role helped establish the Basque club as a genuine force. He orchestrated signings including Alexander Isak and Martin Zubimendi. Notably, Olabe played alongside Emery at La Real before his brief coaching stint and executive transition.

Olabe works alongside Damian Vidagany, director of football operations, whom Emery brought to Villa Park. A former journalist who crossed paths with Emery at Valencia, Vidagany serves as the manager's conduit between the dressing room and boardroom. Emery, unusually for a Premier League boss, operates with minimal hierarchy above him beyond the ownership structure.

Bournemouth – Tiago Pinto

Tiago Pinto, 41, joined the Cherries as president of football operations in 2024 following stints as director of football at Benfica and general manager at Roma. He partners with technical director Simon Francis, the ex-Bournemouth defender who inherited the role when Richard Hughes departed for Liverpool in 2024.

Brentford – Phil Giles

A former Newcastle season-ticket holder with a PhD in statistics, Phil Giles has steered Brentford's football operations for over a decade, guiding their unlikely Premier League ascent. His background in the gambling industry alongside owner Matthew Benham shaped the club's data-driven philosophy. Giles operates alongside technical director Lee Dykes, who oversees recruitment. The partnership has produced remarkably shrewd business.

Brighton – Jason Ayto

Brighton appointed Jason Ayto as sporting director in September 2025, overseeing all footballing matters for the senior men's and women's teams plus academies. The 40-year-old joined from Arsenal, where he spent over a decade climbing the ladder from analyst to chief scout to assistant sporting director under Edu, even serving as interim sporting director during the transition to Berta.

Burnley – Paul Jenkins

The Clarets operate without a single all-powerful sporting director. Instead, Paul Jenkins, director of football development, sits within a wider technical committee structure spanning first team through academy. Jenkins spent much of his career at Middlesbrough working across the academy system before joining Burnley as academy director in 2021.

Chelsea – Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart

Chelsea's approach remains distinctly unconventional. Co-sporting directors Winstanley and Stewart head a five-man sporting leadership team. Joe Shields oversees scouting and talent; Sam Jewell leads global recruiting; Dave Fallows, recruited from Liverpool, directs football development encompassing scouting, data, loans, and player pathways. The structure raises an obvious question: too many cooks in the kitchen?

Crystal Palace – Matt Hobbs

Matt Hobbs made the move to Palace as sporting director in 2025 following three years in the identical role at Wolves. His Molineux trajectory began in academy recruitment before progressing to chief scout and head of player recruitment. He departed by mutual consent two months before inheriting the Palace vacancy left by Dougie Freedman.

Everton – Leadership Team

The Toffees abandoned the Kevin Thelwell model when he left in 2025, pivoting towards a leadership team structure. Nick Cox, formerly Manchester United's academy manager, arrived as technical director. James Smith, ex-City Football Group recruitment lead, became director of scouting and recruitment. Chris Howarth, whose Insight Sport consultancy has touched 14 European clubs, directs football strategy and analytics. Nick Hammond, a vastly experienced operator, leads player trading.

Fulham – Tony Khan

Tony Khan, 43, son of owner Shahid Khan, has worn the sporting director cap since 2017 after initial involvement in transfer dealings from 2016. The American juggles his Fulham responsibilities with founding All-Elite Wrestling and analytics company TruMedia Networks, whilst maintaining involvement with his father's NFL franchise. Busy doesn't begin to describe it.

Leeds United – Adam Underwood

Adam Underwood climbed the Elland Road ladder over more than a decade before promotion to sporting director in 2025. He arrived in 2014 as academy director, progressing to head of football operations from 2023.

Liverpool – Richard Hughes

Richard Hughes, a former Bournemouth midfielder, switched from the south coast to Anfield in 2024 as sporting director. He operates alongside Michael Edwards, who returned as FSG's CEO of football. The pair's history stretches back over 20 years to Portsmouth, where Hughes played whilst Edwards worked as a performance analyst following his initial IT teaching career. Edwards subsequently became Liverpool's sporting director, recruiting Jurgen Klopp before departing in 2022. Two years later, he returned in a more senior capacity, recruiting Hughes to his former position.

Manchester City – Hugo Viana

When Pep Guardiola eventually departs, Hugo Viana shoulders the burden of replacing the irreplaceable. The ex-Newcastle midfielder, 42, took over as sporting director in 2024 from Txiki Begiristain. Prior to joining City, Viana held the same position at Sporting Lisbon.

Manchester United – Jason Wilcox

Jason Wilcox, an ex-Blackburn winger, stepped into the director of football void left by Dan Ashworth's departure in late 2024 after just five months. United recruited Wilcox from Southampton, where he served as director of football, initially as technical director. His Manchester City pedigree includes an academy director role where he worked alongside Omar Berrada, now United's CEO.

Newcastle United – Ross Wilson

Ross Wilson inherited the sporting director position in October 2025 after Newcastle prised him from Nottingham Forest. Ashworth previously held the role before his acrimonious 2024 exit, with Paul Mitchell serving a brief interim period. Eddie Howe championed Wilson's appointment. Wilson's previous roles span Huddersfield, Southampton, and Rangers.

Nottingham Forest – Edu

Edu, the former Arsenal sporting director and ex-midfielder, joined Forest in summer 2025 as head of global football, overseeing recruitment, performance, squad strategy, and player development. Reports suggest his tenure remains precarious—a common condition under owner Evangelos Marinakis.

Sunderland – Kristjaan Speakman and Florent Ghisolfi

Sunderland unusually employ both Kristjaan Speakman as sporting director and Florent Ghisolfi as director of football, the latter arriving last summer following his Roma sporting director tenure. The division of responsibilities remains unclear, though Sunderland's summer workload certainly justified two sets of hands. Speakman joined in 2020 from Birmingham, where he served as academy director.

Tottenham Hotspur – Johan Lange

Johan Lange worked as co-sporting director alongside Fabio Paratici, who returned to the club in October 2025 following a 30-month ban imposed by the Italian Football Federation that forced his resignation. Paratici's tenure proved brief—he departed for Fiorentina in February, leaving Lange to navigate the role solo. Lange initially joined Tottenham as technical director in 2023 from Aston Villa, having previously held similar positions at FC Copenhagen and Wolves.

West Ham United – Mark Noble

Mark Noble, the former Hammers captain, became sporting director in 2022 following his retirement. His current status remains somewhat mysterious—he's conspicuously absent from the club's website's who's who section. Reports suggest he's focused heavily on academy development and, rather tellingly, lacks his own office. All rather peculiar, particularly when West Ham desperately needs leadership.

Wolves – Matt Jackson

Wolves appointed former Everton, Norwich, and Wigan defender Matt Jackson as technical director in late 2025 following Domenico Teti's five-month stint. Teti, recruited to work alongside Vitor Pereira during a recruitment restructure, exited when Pereira and eight staff members were removed. Jackson's appointment followed Rob Edwards' recruitment as head coach from Middlesbrough. Jackson's post-playing career included agent work, punditry, and a Wigan head of football operations role before joining Wolves in 2021, with a brief Grasshoppers presidency in Zurich interspersed.