In The Boardroom

In this episode of In The Boardroom, Jacqui Oatley speaks to Paul Conway, Co-Chairman of Barnsley Football Club and Co-Founder of the Pacific Media Group or PMG. 

PMG is one of an increasing number of multi-club groups, alongside the likes of the Red Bull group and the City football group.

PMG at time of recording has investments in Barnsley, AS Nancy Lorraine in France’s second division, FC Thun in the second tier of Swiss football, KV Oostende in Belgium’s top division, Esbjerg fB in Denmark’s second tier and FC Den Bosch in the Dutch second tier.

We spoke to Paul about why he decided to start investing in European football, and how his specific multi-club model works in practise amongst other things.

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

In this episode of In The Boardroom, Jacqui Oatley speaks to Paul Barber, Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman, Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club.

Paul’s career in football administration has also seen him work for the English FA, Tottenham Hotspur and Canadian MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps.

Paul has been at Brighton for nearly a decade and has helped steer The Seagulls from the Championship to the Premier League in that time.

As well as his success with Brighton, we also discussed the fallout of the European Super League debacle plus the interim findings of the fan led review into Football Governance amongst many other things.

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

In this episode of In The Boardroom, a brand new podcast series from The Athletic, Jacqui Oatley speaks to Preeti Shetty, a non-executive member of the board at Premier League side Brentford F.C.

Preeti was one of two people hired by Brentford to join their board in a process that was open to all comers, a relatively rare thing in the world of football boardrooms.

Preeti tells us about her career working to use the power of sport for good: whether that’s in her work as CEO of data company Upshot or in her new role with Brentford.

We also discussed what the process was like to become a director, how the first six months of life in the boardroom is treating her, including that magical opening day win over Arsenal, as well as much more. 

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

For In The Boardroom, a brand new podcast series from The Athletic, Jacqui Oatley speaks to influential people who operate at senior levels in football about their experiences of working in the game.

In this episode, we’re speaking to Leon Mann MBE, campaigner and co-founder of The Football Blacklist.

The Football Blacklist was founded in 2008 by Leon and Rodney Hinds and is designed to help draw positive attention to the black professionals working in football and to celebrate their achievements.

Leon also co-founded the Black Collective of Media in Sport (BCOMS) which is designed to be the first port of call for existing and burgeoning black professionals in the sports media.

The conversation covered Leon’s work trying to make various aspects of football more inclusive from coaching to club administration to the media.

We discuss the problems he still sees as being significant, what progress has and hasn’t been made, the benefits of a more diverse and inclusive environment and what we can all do to help achieve that.

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

For In The Boardroom, a brand new podcast series from The Athletic, Jacqui Oatley speaks to influential people who operate at senior levels in football about their experiences of working in the game.

In this episode we’re taking a trip down memory line and looking at the rise and fall and rise again of Portsmouth Football Club, from the Premier League, FA Cup triumph and European football to relegations, administrations and very nearly falling out of both the Football League and existence, full stop.

Ashley Brown was chairman of the Pompey Supporter’s Trust around the time they fought a High Court battle to buy the club back for the fans.

In this conversation we explore that journey as well as hearing what it’s like going from being a fan of your club to actually running it.

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

For In The Boardroom, a brand new podcast series from The Athletic, Jacqui Oatley speaks to influential people who operate at senior levels in football about their experiences of working in the game.

It may be the head of a supporters’ trust taking over a club in crisis or a director changing the way their club addresses inequality. In The Boardroom will bring an in-depth and nuanced insight from behind the scenes.

In this first episode, we’re speaking to Clare Wheatley, Arsenal's Head Of Women's Football 

Clare joined Arsenal as a player back in 1995, the start of a 26-year association.

Arsenal are the most successful club in English women’s football history, having won 15 league titles, 14 FA Cups and remain the only British club to have been European champions, that was during their quadruple season of 2007.

In The Boardroom from The Athletic is presented by Jacqui Oatley and is produced by Steve Hankey.

The makeup of football clubs' boardrooms is typically a world away from the days when the majority of teams were the fiefdoms of local businessmen known simply as 'Mr Chairman'. With so many horror stories over the past two decades, running a club in the right way is both important and more complex than ever before. In this series, Jacqui Oatley hears from the men and women at every level of the game trying to bring about positive change to their clubs, their fans and the wider football community