FA gets first marketing chief in two years

Former Coca-Cola marketer Simon Freedman will become the new head of marketing for the English Football Association.

Freedman will report to group commercial director Jonathan Hill.

He is the FA's first full-time head of marketing in two years. Ed Coan oversaw the marketing department as a consultant since 2005. Coan will goes back to the traditional consultancy role, taking on specific projects as required by the FA.

"We did not have a central marketing department prior to two years ago, and we've come a long way in that time," Hill said. "With a growing team and a fully-fledged design studio we needed a full-time appointment and are delighted to have secured Simon, with all the relevant experience he will bring."

Freedman was responsible for the marketing strategy of Coca-Cola's football sponsorship activities. The company has a GBP 15 million sponsorship deal in place with the Football League.

Previously, the 35-year-old Freedman was a senior brand manager at Dairy Crest and has also held various sales and marketing roles at Nestle.

Freedman's role likely will cover the new Wembley Stadium, as well as negotiations over the 2008 to 2012 television and digital rights to the FA Cup and England home matches.

"I am absolutely delighted to be joining the FA. It is a long-held desire to work for the game's governing body in England, an organisation that possesses such a fantastic portfolio of properties, like the FA Cup and the England team," Freedman said. "I am really excited about the opportunity to impart some of my experience from leading Coke's football programmes into leading the marketing department of the FA."

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.