Associate General Counsel – Commercial/Sports Lawyer, 8-15 PQE

Associate General Counsel – Commercial/Sports Lawyer, 8-15 PQE

Established in 1886, Arsenal is one of the most famous clubs in world football, with a strong heritage of success in the men’s and women’s game. Trailblazers on and off the pitch, with a commitment to its local and global community, diversity and youth, Arsenal acts for a winning team, culture, and community. Arsenal’s relentless pursuit of progress continues with a re-defined strategy to take the club forward. The 2022/23 season has seen the men’s team re-enter the UEFA Champions League, the launch of the club’s new commercial strategy through the lens of everything Arsenal stands for and a renewed commitment to putting supporters at the heart of everything we do.

Over the years, Arsenal has taken decisions that have shaped the club we know and love today, and this continues with ambitious strategies and an Always Forward mindset in place that responds to the world in which we live.

Due to the continued success of the club and the implementation of these ambitious targets, an extremely rare opportunity has arisen for an 8-15 PQE commercial/sports lawyer to join the legal team in a newly-created role as Associate General Counsel. As a key member of our first-rate legal team, you will focus on managing senior level legal matters relating to the commercial areas of the club, namely; Partnership Sales & Business Development, Partner Services, Venue Management and Marketing and Retail. This will be a high profile and vital role which will involve regular contact with key internal senior Executives, in particular the Chief Commercial Officer and her Directors heading up the key commercial areas as well as key external senior stakeholders. Working alongside one other AGC and reporting directly to our GC you will also be responsible for leading and inspiring a small team of lawyers as well as assisting in managing legal budget for commercial operations.

This is a unique role and we are looking for an exceptional individual who will:

• Act as an inspirational role model and leader, embodying the club’s values and behaviours at all times and helping legal colleagues fulfil their potential.
• Facilitate the delivery of the club’s ambitious global commercial strategy.
• Provide exceptional legal support to a range of internal clients including senior members of the club/Executive and external stakeholders for senior level legal affairs across the club’s commercial business areas.
• Seek to add value, provide a creative and solutions orientated approach to all of the legal and strategic work with colleagues in the commercial team.
• Review, draft, and negotiate complex strategic commercial contracts across all supported areas, including partnership agreements, match participation agreements, event and stadium use agreements (e.g. concerts and friendly matches), service agreements, licence agreements and agent agreements.
• Manage the club’s intellectual property portfolio.
• Deal with any legal disputes related to the commercial functions.
• Embrace, promote and drive diversity and inclusion across the club.

This will be both a demanding and highly rewarding role which requires someone who is not only technically strong but also robust and pragmatic in their approach with an outgoing and engaging personality capable of winning the confidence of commercial colleagues operating in a fast-paced environment. The ability to lead by example will also be key to your success as you work alongside our GC helping to shape the direction and development of the legal team going forwards.

In return, we are offering a truly exceptional opportunity to operate at a senior level within one of the world’s most prestigious clubs, playing a key role in helping us to achieve our ambitious commercial strategies and grow the global brand still further.

Arsenal believes that diversity of background, skills and experience drives our success on and off the pitch. We encourage applications from women, disabled and black, Asian and mixed-heritage candidates. We are committed to the principle of equal opportunity for applicants and employees and aim to appoint on merit from a diverse talent pool.

For further information or to apply, please contact our exclusively retained consultants Nick Creed or Sam Baker at Baker Creed on 07801 930521 or email: info@bakercreed.co.uk.  All direct or third-party applications will be forwarded to Baker Creed for consideration.