WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR:
We’re looking for a brilliant Senior Account Director to join our fast-growing sports communications agency in our Manchester office. The dream candidate will be a positive and collaborative leader with outstanding communication skills, creativity, high standards and a drive to help their team shape and deliver high quality work. We’d love to identify an individual who specifically has experience working in sport and a passion for sport in all forms, is a high-class comms operator, and is ambitious to grow with us and hungry to build their dream career.
This person would report directly into the Director of our Manchester office, and also form part of our expanded overall MatchFit Senior Leadership Team. This SLT reports in to the agency ‘Management Team’ (Comprising two divisional Directors, and the two Co-Founders.) To apply, please send a CV and note to SAD@matchfit.agency. Closing date is July 1, 2025.
WHO WE ARE:
We are MatchFit, the communications agency with sport in our DNA. Like all great sports teams, we bring a blend of experience, skills, personalities and expertise, bonded together by a shared mission. Ours? We want everyone to love sports the way we do.
With several incredible clients including: The FA, LALIGA, Manchester City, MatchWornShirt, EA Sports and Topps, to name just a few, our award-winning work puts brilliant communications thinking first. From eye-catching creative. PR which cuts through. Scroll-stopping social.
Influencers who can unlock new audiences. Content which connects. Reputations protected and enhanced. We unleash the power of ‘earned-first’ storytelling in sport to make brands unmissable.
Recent Awards& Shortlistings:
❑ Sport Industry Awards 2025: SpecialistAgency of the Year
❑ UK Sponsorship Awards 2025: Agency of the Year (Winner: Challenger)
❑ Football Business Awards 2025: Agency of the Year and Women’s Football Business
❑ Sports Business Awards 2024: Agency of the Year and Women’s SportBusiness
❑ PRWeek Awards 2024: 2 campaign nominations with The FA
❑ The Drum Awards 2024: 4 nominations, inc. Gold for Topps in the Sports PR category
ROLE OVERVIEW:
Aspart of MatchFit’s growth, our core business is separated into two P&L divisions – North & South – and are each led by a brilliant Director. These Directors report to the Co-Founders as part of the Senior Leadership Team, and the Senior Account Director will report to one of these two Directors.
Note, despite the role being based in Manchester and you predominantly working into the North P&L / division, there may be times when the team in the South will need your support.
Whilst this will primarily be done virtually, there will be occasions where travel to the London office to support the South team will be required. The Senior Account Director will play a hugely important role within MatchFit, joining the extended Senior Leadership Team and leading several of our world-class clients.
Our aspiration is for this individual to progress into a future leader of the business as part of the Management Team. The ideal Senior Account Director will have excellent rights holder and brand experience within sports communications specifically, be comfortable working with elite talent and ambassadors across consumer campaigns and be able to navigate clients through the business of sport.
❑ Line Management & Team
In addition to taking on direct line management and development responsibilities for Senior Account Managers and Account Managers, you would play a key role in shaping the overall development of juniors and be an influential voice in resourcing and staffing decision-making alongside your Director. You will have the opportunity to play a prominent role in wider team culture aspart of the Management Team, working in tandem with our brilliant Head of People.
❑ Leading Award-Winning Client Campaign Work
You will play a critical role in the conception and execution of client campaigns and as a senior point of contact for clients. You will be empowered to inspire, coach and direct your supporting junior team to ensure brilliant delivery in line with our expected standard, and the values of MatchFit.
You will be a fantastic PR and communications practitioner who embodies the values of ‘earned-first’ storytelling, and everything a contemporary agency offers from media relations, strategy, influencers, ambassadors, creative, content and reputation.
❑ Client Organic Growth
Working with your Director as a mentor figure, you will be empowered to seek organic growth within your clients to boost the business's profitability and build your own SLT credentials.
❑ New Business
A strong pipeline of new business is vital to the ongoing growth of the agency, and this candidate will play a big role in supporting the wider efforts of the SLT and Co-Founders, from participating in creds and chemistry meetings to strong involvement in pitch creation and presentation. We empower staff at all levels to be involved in new business (we believe if a junior is on the team they should be in the pitch!) so you will play an important role in coaching and guiding the team. And if there is an area you are passionate about or a dream client…let’s hatch a plan to make it happen!
THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE WILL HAVE:
❑ Outstanding client servicing skills
❑ Brilliant leadership and team work skills
❑ Experience leading a global, 6-figure client from planning, creative ideation, and strategy development through to overseeing the final execution – example(s) to be shared
❑ Experience working with multiple stakeholders across a creative project. For example: various team members within internal brand teams or working with x-agency teams such as social, influencer, advertising, creative, paid media etc.
❑ A desire to foster a fun but high-quality work culture
❑ The ability to manage and communicate well both with your team and with agency leadership
❑ Experience managing finance aspects at a previous agency and / or client scope. This could include: development of a scope of work, overseeing a budget cost tracker, experience flagging or forecasting client over servicing, management of supplier invoices, experience in managing team resourcing in line with scopes and agency capacity
❑ The ability to act quickly and on-demand. Thinking on your feet when presented with a client problem and providing a solution within a timely manner – not leaving the client waiting with a long period of time and providing strategic guidance and council that ultimately builds trust in your relationship and ability to deliver
❑ Relish playing a prominent role in the creative process to conceive high quality work
❑ Comfort applying strategic thinking and building high class documents and plans
❑ Brilliant pitching and presentation skills
❑ A reputation for being a fantastic role model, leader and coach for their team
❑ A natural love and enthusiasm forPR, and experience leading their team to brilliantly execute earned media campaigns
❑ Be able to commute to our office in Manchester on Tuesdays to Thursdays
PERKS AND BENEFITS:
❑ 24 Days Annual Leave Allowance running January to December. Your allocation does not include the eight Bank Holidays, which you receive in addition. We also hope to close for 1.5 weeks over Christmas and New Year, with no impact on holiday allowance, pending client work allowing
❑ For You Day: One day a year, outside of your holiday allocation, which is simply for you. The day has been spent celebrating birthdays, volunteering, experiencing culture, and watching sports!
❑ MatchFit Sporting Moment: Furthering our mission ‘We want everyone to love sport as much as we do’, our people have £250 each year to spend on a unique sport experience
❑ Annual Profit Share Scheme: This is contingent on business performance and profitability as well as personal performance
❑ Pension Scheme: MatchFit contribution of 3%, along with a personal contribution of 5%, although you could contribute more if you desire
❑ Juno Benefits Scheme: the flexible benefits platform connecting our employees to hundreds of available products, services and experiences aimed at improving their wellbeing, inside and outside of work
❑ Private Medical Insurance: Industry-leading private medical insurance, offering primary care (including GP services), mental health support, in-patient and day-patient treatments, outpatient and surgical procedures and advanced cancer cover
❑ 1-for-1 Day-in-lieu: for any time spent out at weekend client events
❑ Hybrid Working Policy: With Monday and Friday designated as work-from-home days
❑ Travel Season Ticket Loan to support train commuters which will be paid off within your monthly salary
❑ Training and Development: including ‘Lunch and Learn’ – our vibrant monthly internal programme – and external opportunities and courses, including attending panels, conferences, seminars and networking events.
❑ Team Socials: Every quarter, as well as an annual Agency Away Day and an annual Christmas Party Day
❑ Cycle to WorkScheme
❑ Free Monthly TeamLunch
❑ Life Insurance: Four times annual salary as Death in Service
SALARY:
❑ £62,000
WHY MATCHFIT?
Underpinned by our mission – ‘We want everyone to love sport as much as we do’ – we are well on the way to our vision to build the best sports communications agency in the UK. Following substantial year-on-year growth, including 75% this year, we are ready to enter a new era for MatchFit which makes this an incredibly exciting time to join the team.
We are committed to cultivating an agency which empowers our people to build their dream career in sports communications, work with world-class clients, and be proud to be apart of MatchFit. With a steadfast belief in gender equality and equal opportunity, this is an agency which can truly change the game. We know that there are no limits to what our team can achieve together. And we are going to have a lot of fun seeing how far we can go.
If you’d like to get MatchFit, we’d love to hear from you. To apply, please send a CV and note to SAD@matchfit.agency
