The Football Association (FA) has appointed Kathryn Swarbrick as its new Commercial & Marketing Director.

Swarbrick, who is set to join English football’s governing body on 4 November, has previously held roles within organisations such as Heineken and Diageo, with her most recent role being Vice President of Marketing across Western Europe and South Africa for PepsiCo.

Swarbrick looked forward to her involvement with the FA, commenting: “Few things unite the nation like football and this role offers a unique opportunity to get more people actively involved and engaged with the game. Ultimately every pound we raise as a commercial team is re-invested into developing the game from grassroots upwards – a genuine force for good – which I can’t wait to be a part of.

“I am looking forward to building on the momentum that The FA has created in this space in recent years and will hopefully bring a different perspective on ways to further develop the FA brands, delivering world class content and experiences for fans.”

In her new role, Swarbrick will be responsible for the commercial and marketing strategy across the entire FA portfolio which includes 29 England teams, Wembley Stadium, the Emirates FA Cup, the FA Barclays Women’s Super League, and the Women’s FA Cup.

As Commercial & Marketing Director, she will now sit on The FA’s senior management team and will report to CEO Mark Bullingham. Her duties will also involve broadcast, sponsorship, events, licensing, merchandising, hospitality and all digital content and social channels.

Bullingham, commented on Swarbricks appointment, concluding: “We are delighted that Kathryn will be joining us. Her track record is world class and she has achieved fantastic results wherever she has worked previously, and we established a good working relationship when she was responsible for PepsiCo’s UEFA Champions League partnership.

“I’m extremely proud of the work that our Commercial & Marketing team has done in recent years and our challenge is to now build on that to take it to an even higher level, engaging more consumers and fans directly, which Kathryn will help us to do. She joins a strong senior management team as we look to put in place our strategy for the next four years to maximise our impact on football and the country.”

The announcement comes shortly after BT revealed a lead partnership with all four UK home nations.

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