Head of Analysis

What the role involves

• Lead analysts and data scientists
• Set analysis priorities with the coach and board
• Choose providers and tools

Ways in, with or without formal qualifications

Experience, knowledge and interests count in football. These routes are what people in this role commonly point to.

• Network

  Mentors, conferences and online communities

  Football runs on relationships. Meeting people at conferences, courses and online communities opens more opportunities than cold applications.

Qualifications and licences

These can strengthen an application but are not a gate.

• Degree

  Performance Analysis or Sports Analytics Degree

  Degrees designed for sports analysts, mixing video analysis, statistics and coaching knowledge. Helpful for analyst roles but not the only door.

• Short course

  Data & Analytics Courses (SQL, Python, Machine Learning)

  Short courses and certificates in data skills. Their value comes from the projects you complete with them, especially football-based projects.

• Business & management

  Football Management Certificate (UEFA CFM)

  A management programme for football administrators with modules on strategy, finance, legal, marketing and organisation. Offered with partner universities.

Skills and knowledge

• Leadership
• Video Analysis
• Statistics & Modelling
• Communication

Tools you may use

• Video analysis software
• Event-data providers
• Dashboard tools

Where this role is found

• Top-flight clubs
• Academies & youth development
• Women's professional football

Where this role leads

• Technical Director

  Strongly preferred

  Sets the football philosophy and builds the pathway from academy to first team.

• Sporting Director / Director of Football

  Strongly preferred

  Leads the football strategy across recruitment, coaching appointments and contracts.

Common stepping stones into this role

• First-Team Performance Analyst
• Opposition Analyst
• Football Data Scientist
• Football Data Engineer

Pay and context by region

Illustrative estimates scaled from a UK baseline. Check local job adverts and union or association data.