Sport Manager, Football

LA28•Los Angeles, CA

17d•$85,000 - $105,000•Onsite

About The Position

LA28 is the independent, non-profit, privately funded organizing committee for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. We are on a singular mission to create an Olympic and Paralympic Games that celebrate all that this city and country have to offer, delivering an unparalleled experience for athletes, fans, partners and our community. The 2028 Games mark the return of the Summer Games to the U.S. for the first time in 32 years and Los Angeles’ third time hosting an Olympic Games and first time welcoming the Paralympic Games. This presents the unique and exciting opportunity to celebrate our legacy with the Games and push the Olympic and Paralympic Movements forward, writing a new chapter of Games history in Los Angeles. Putting on an Olympic and Paralympic Games is a team sport. To build a Games unlike any the world has seen before, we need the best team in place–a team full of diverse perspectives, experiences and expertise. We are guided by the following set of values and behaviors–optimism, integrity, excellence, inclusion, co-creation and boldness–and look forward to hearing about how your past experiences align with them. LA28 is looking to identify a Football Sport Manager for the Olympic Football Tournament 2028. In coordination with FIFA, the International Federation for football, LA28 will identify and onboard a Football Sport Manager in 2025. Please make sure to highlight your football-specific experience, including the level of events you have managed and delivered (e.g., club, collegiate, national, international), in your resume. Please note that due to the expected high volume of applicants the hiring of this position may take longer than others within LA28. The Football Sport Manager will play a critical role within the LA28 Sport team, reporting to a Sport Group Senior Manager while leading all aspects of operational planning for the Olympic Football tournament. This role will liaise directly with FIFA and US Soccer. The position will also be expected to collaborate with the centralized Sport Planning team as well as other LA28 functions (i.e. Venues and Infrastructure, Venue Management, Ticketing and Hospitality, Games services, Transport, Accommodations, Food and Beverage, Accreditation, etc), as well as across the organization (including but not limited to Athlete Relations, Strategy, Marketing, Commercial, Technology, HR, and Finance).

Requirements

Minimum 5+ years’ experience delivering national and international level sporting events in a leadership role
Extensive knowledge of football and event operations experience and exposure at multiple levels, including professional leagues or teams, federations, universities, and grassroots
Understanding and expertise within football at the international and national level as well as coordination with international and US Sport governing bodies
A clear understanding of IF rules and regulations for football
Experience collaborating with colleagues on venue design, event planning, management and delivery across multiple functional areas
Extensive experience recruiting, training and leading a large and diverse workforce for the delivery of sporting events
Extremely detail-oriented with excellent organizational skills
Well-developed problem-solving skills and ability to work independently to resolve issues
Fluent working with Office suite products including Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint
Self-starter with experience in defining tasks, seeking feedback, and evolving work
Required proven ability of building good interpersonal relationships with people across the organization and with external stakeholders, while balancing assertiveness with diplomacy
Ability to implement and manage change effectively
Demonstrated commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging.
Experience considering diverse groups of athletes in Sport planning and delivery, with special attention to how ability, gender, and other identities impact different athletes’ experiences.
Bachelor’s degree or relevant work experience required

Nice To Haves

Direct Olympic and Paralympic sport experience at a previous OCOG, multi-sport Games or experience delivering IF level events is a significant asset

Responsibilities

Competition and Training Venue(s) Design
Liaise with FIFA for the development and design of competition and training venues across all football Co-Host cities
Coordinate with LA28 Venues and Infrastructure and Event Management and other FAs internal to LA28 to provide football specific input into the development and design of competition and training venues
Assist with the planning, management and selection of co-host city stadiums and training sites.
Competition Management & Planning
Act as the subject matter expert for the sport of football within the organization and especially in the development and refinement of Event Operating Plans (EOPs)
Collaborate with FIFA on the development of the competition schedule and training schedules for Football
Validate sport equipment requirements for assigned football ensuring that all Olympic and Paralympic IF requirements have been scoped
Provide sport specific feedback as required for all pre-Games, testing and Games-time planning across the organization via centralized planning activities lead by Sport Planning including relevant Sport Delivery Plans as well as venue specific planning activities with other functions
Provide input to Sport Planning on the development of the test event calendar
Coordinate with Timing, Scoring & Results to ensure all FIFA requirements are integrated into planning for both systems and infrastructure related to managing the competition
Competition Management Workforce
Assist in the development of an Olympic Football Tournament structure including headcount, job description development, management structure and hiring.
Collaborate on the Sport Workforce strategy and planning for football, liaising with the NGB and local sport community where relevant to identify paid staff, National Technical Officials and Sport Skilled Volunteers currently engaged in local and regional events
Lead the recruitment process for roles within Competition Management for football
On-boarding and day-to-day leadership of all Competition Management workforce within football
Support the development of football specific testing and Games-time training workforce.
IF, NGB & Sport Community Relations
Act as the point of entry to LA28 and the stakeholder manager for FIFA
Liaise with FIFA and US Soccer, local sport communities, for football, and coordinate with other Sport Managers to ensure clear and coordinated communication when managing a multi-discipline sport
Manage and track all Olympic and Paralympic IF and NGB communication and brief Sport Group Manager and Senior Sport Director on the status of relations and Games-time planning
Manage Pre-Games IF Site visits for football including in Los Angeles and Co-Host Cities, developing an effective agenda, liaising with FAs and Stakeholders on their participation and producing site visit reports and presentations
Manage the completion and tracking of all inputs to each Sport Delivery Plan (SDP) for assigned sports/disciplines
Administration & Program Management
Provide reports and updates on the status of deliverables and tasks to communicate overall progress in the planning for football
Support the development of budgets and projects plans with well researched and validated sport and discipline specific information and planning assumptions
Competition Management – Testing & Games-Time
Lead all competition management workforce for football to ensure a seamless and world class delivery of operations to support the competition, athlete and IF spaces within the competition and training venues
Act as the integration point within the organization for all FIFA related requirements for delivery of the competition and training for football