A sporting director is now an essential part of any elite footballing structure. While generally understood as a measure to protect clubs from the growing financial risks associated with their sporting decisions and to ensure continuity, the mechanics of the role remain somewhat vague. Previously, football departments were governed more simply by a manager and an executive. The manager would coach the team, the executive would handle club finances, and both would share responsibility for recruitment decisions.
However, while this method was successful in the past, it is now inadequate for the modern game. The dynamic relied on strong relationships, but the declining tenure of managers has made this a thing of the past. According to 21st Club data from 2018, managers have lasted an average of just 14 months since the 2012/13 season. As a result, clubs are increasingly reluctant to bestow transfer authority upon a transient position.
More broadly, building any short or long-term strategy around the role accentuates the wastage already associated with professional football. Bury Sporting Director Lee Dykes characterized this problem in a recent interview with the Telegraph, saying: "We cannot be self-sustainable if, every time there is a change of manager, all the plans go out of the window, a big chunk of staff leaves, and half the playing squad is considered a cost because the new manager wants to bring his own players in.
It would just plough the football club into debt." The evolution of football has also led to the creation of many more performance layers within a club, requiring a level of expertise beyond that of the old executive. Now, sports science, analytics, scouting, and coaching units operate as their own departments, almost like individual businesses with their own specific targets and aims. Essentially, the sporting director role has grown to fill space created by football's growth. The position demands a combination of business and sporting acumen, strong leadership ability, and interpersonal skills. Typically, they are also trained professionals with real-world qualifications.
Damien Comolli, previously sporting director at Liverpool and Tottenham, has a law degree. Raul Sanllehi, currently head of football at Arsenal, spent over a decade working for Nike and has a BA in economics, marketing, and finance. These are not just ex-players who have migrated into management roles post-retirement, but skilled, educated, and experienced private sector workers. Not that ex-players are precluded from the positions: Borussia Dortmund's Michael Zorc is widely considered one of the most successful sporting directors of the modern era.
After playing for the club for 17 years, Zorc took on the role in 1998. During his tenure, the club has won the Bundesliga three times, reached a Champions League final, and consistently produced, nurtured, and recruited talented young players. Zorc has been fundamental to that success and is responsible for creating and sustaining the philosophy at its core. In "How the World's Best Play the 21st Century Game" by Grant Wahl, Zorc outlined his approach. "Our philosophy is linked to our region, a working-class region," he said. "So it has to be daring, it has to be attacking.
The fans don't like it when the team plays like chess on the field. That is a very important point." Rather than just an ideal, the philosophy provides a guiding principle for the way the club functions. For instance, despite hiring four different coaches since the departure of Jurgen Klopp in 2015, that change has never led to major upheaval. Instead, Dortmund habitually appoint managers with similar philosophies who require similar types of players. As a result, a change of manager never necessitates a squad overhaul.
Additionally, Dortmund is renowned for producing excellent young players through their academy and for their intelligent transfer recruitment. In the current squad, Mario Gotze and Jacob Bruun Larsen are academy graduates, while the likes of Lukasz Piszczek, Mahmoud Dahoud, Julian Weigl, Marco Reus, and Jadon Sancho have been purchased at young ages for minimal fees. Zorc insists that the young teams mimic the first team's tactics, making the transition to senior-level football easier for developing players.
Dortmund's ability to purchase and nurture young talent is not simply due to their excellent scouting but also the result of a fierce commitment to youth development that stems from their philosophy of "daring" and "attacking" football. It makes Dortmund an attractive destination for players who, by their career's peak, would most likely be outside the club's price range. That financial reality has accentuated Zorc's effect. Unlike Bayern Munich domestically and Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, and Manchester City in Europe, Dortmund cannot compete for the best players in the world. As such, they are forced to find a different route to success.
Ali Amadghous
Sport Management Expert
