Merijn Zeeman
Spent 16 years in pro cycling, the last 10 as Sporting Director of Team Visma-Lease a Bike. Transformed the team from bottom of the World Tour rankings into the most dominant force in the sport, culminating in winning all three Grand Tours in 2023. Central to this success was a culture-first, data-driven approach - principles Merijn is now applying to football as General Manager of AZ Alkmaar.
Ross Wilson
One of the most experienced Sporting Directors in British football. Arrived at Newcastle in October 2025 to take charge of sporting strategy, development & recruitment across men's, women's and Academy. Joined from Nottingham Forest, where he was Chief Football Officer. Before that spent three years as Sporting Director at Rangers, delivering a first league title in a decade, a Scottish Cup and a run to the Europa League final.
Simon Wilson
The new Sporting Director at Sheffield Wednesday, charged with helping to revive a fallen giant. Previously played a central role in one of English football's most remarkable recent success stories, taking Stockport from National League to League One in six years. Has also held senior roles at Manchester City, Sunderland and Southampton.
Leigh Bromby
Former defender for Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday who spent nine years at Huddersfield Town, progressing from Academy Manager to Sporting Director. Under his stewardship the Terriers reached the 2022 Championship play-off final. Joined Derby in 2025 and is now Talent Acquisition Lead. Role split between leading on recruitment and negotiations, as well as shaping the club's broader strategy.
Reed Shaffner
Chief Technology Officer at Teamworks, bringing 15 years of experience in technology and product leadership. Previously served as CTO at TeamSnap, and before that held senior product roles at Microsoft and more. Now leads Teamworks' technology strategy, drawing on this cross-industry experience to help build tools for athletes and elite sports organisations.
Liam Bailey
Football Analytics Consultant at SkillCorner, collaborating with professional clubs to design custom metrics and streamlined analytics workflows for elite recruitment and performance analysis.
Stuart Webber
Spent a decade as one of English football's most prominent Sporting Directors, helping Norwich City and Huddersfield Town gain promotion to the Premier League. After leaving Norwich in 2023, he has pursued his long-held ambition to work abroad, taking up the role of Head of Sports at RB Omiya Ardija in Japan.
James Young
Has worked in sports performance for the last 15 years. After starting as a biomechanist with England Cricket, he moved to Deloitte to build their Global Performance Analytics practice. In 2021, James was recruited by Sunderland to lead their analysis & data department. At Genius, he looks after key partners such as English Premier League, Belgium Pro League & UEFA.
Sasha Satikova
Club Consultant at the sports advistory firm Ludonautics, founded by Dr Ian Graham. Previously Lead Data Scientist at Tottenham, where she headed the club's data science capability, and Senior Data Scientist at Manchester City. Sasha has built her career around using advanced statistical models and machine learning to inform decision-making across recruitment, performance and squad planning.
Claire-Marie Roberts
Most recently Performance Director at Coventry City in a period that culminated in promotion to the Premier League. Previously spent seven years as Chartered Psychologist for the British Olympic Association and nearly nine at the Premier League, latterly as Head of Elite Development. A former international swimmer and midfielder for Swindon and Aston Villa, Claire-Marie brings rare experience as athlete, coach, psychologist and performance leader.
Gareth Quinn
A Northern Irish entrepreneur and co-founder of Kairos, now General Manager for EMEA at Teamworks, where he leads the sales operation for all Teamworks products across the region, including Teamworks Intelligence, the advanced analytics platform that helps elite football clubs gain a competitive edge through data-driven insight.
Neil Bath
Neil spent 30 years at Chelsea, holding a variety of senior roles including Academy Manager and Director of Development and Operations. During this time, the Academy enjoyed one of the most successful periods in its history. After leaving in July 2024, Neil has travelled extensively across the globe studying best practice in both sport and business, and now leads his own leadership consultancy.
Stephen Torpey
Joined Man Utd as Academy Director in 2025, taking responsibility for all aspects of the club's youth development system. Arrived from Brentford, where he had led rebuild of the club's Academy structure and eventual return to Category One. Before that, spent time at Man City, leading Academy coaching across all ages, and at Liverpool, where he headed the Foundation phase.
Jon Hunter-Barrett
Has spent 14 years at Wolves, progressing through eight different roles to become Academy Director. Now one of the most experienced Academy leaders in the country. During his time at Compton Park, Jon has been instrumental in shaping the club's player development philosophy.
David Rainford
David joined Brentford as Academy Director in early 2026, arriving from the Premier League, where he spent nearly a decade shaping the national youth development system. As Head of Education and Academy Player Care since 2020, he led the development of the National Duty of Care provision within the Elite Player Performance Plan.
Joe Newton
Experienced Performance Analyst/ Coach-Analyst who transitioned from a playing career with Tranmere Rovers and Wrexham. Spent six years at Brentford as First Team Analyst, helping them secure promotion to the Premier League. Was a pioneer of the Coach-Analyst role at Tottenham in 2025/26.
JP Pittman
Played for clubs including Grimsby, Oxford and Wycombe before gaining his UEFA A Licence and graduating from Premier League's Player to Coach Scheme. Joined Brentford in 2023 as Assistant U18s Head Coach and now leads on Individual Development Plans, drawing on a Master's in sports coaching from Leeds Beckett.
Paul Ford MBE
Spent more than 15 years as Director of Sport for the British Olympic Association, leading high-performance strategy for Team GB across multiple Olympic Games. In April 2026 he made the move into pro football, joining Norwich City as Performance Director with responsibility for medical, performance, nutrition and psychology.
Dr Robert Percy Marshall
As Director of Medical & Performance at AFC Bournemouth, leads all areas of athlete health and performance across the club. Before joining Bournemouth, served as Team Doctor at RB Leipzig (2018–2025), helping the club win two DFB Cups and the German Supercup, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Dr John Hill
High-performance specialist with more than 15 years' experience at football's highest levels. Has held senior high-performance roles in the Saudi Pro League and at Liverpool. His work focuses on integrating applied sport science, athlete monitoring and emerging technologies to improve training load management, recovery and performance outcomes.
Stephen Pearce
CEO at Derby County, with more than 20 years of experience in football finance and governance. Trained as a chartered accountant at KPMG before spending seven years at Chelsea as Head of Statutory Reporting. Joined Derby in 2013 as Chief Financial Officer and became CEO in 2018 - a role he's held alongside CFO ever since - overseeing both the club's finances and its day-to-day running.
David Fox
Former pro player who is now Head of Football Operations at Plymouth Argyle. Came through Manchester United's Academy before playing for Blackpool, Norwich, Crewe and Plymouth, where he made 128 appearances. Became Loans Manager at Huddersfield and Leicester before returning to Plymouth in 2025 to lead football operations.
Steven Schumacher
Head Coach of Bolton Wanderers, leading them to promotion to the Championship in 2025/26. Won League One at Plymouth Argyle in 2022/23 with 101 points. As a player, progressed through Everton's Academy before Bradford, Crewe, Bury, Fleetwood and Stevenage. Captained Bury to promotion in 2011 and began his coaching career with them.
Sarah Mulkerrins
Sarah returns to host TGG Live after fronting our last two events. Sports broadcaster known mainly for her work over the last decade on BBC TV and radio, where she has covered World Cups, Olympics, World Championships and many of the biggest sports news stories.