clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Co-sporting director Laurence Stewart completes Chelsea’s new ‘sporting department’

Everyone in place

If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Chelsea Training Session and Press Conference Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images

Chelsea’s new “sporting department” has now taken its final shape as well, with Laurence Stewart now officially in place as our co-sporting director, alongside Paul Winstanley. Stewart agreed to join us from AS Monaco way back at the end of the October and that is finally going to happen “next week”, as confirmed by the club today.

Stewart and Winstanley will head up the operation — co-owner and chairman Todd Boehly relinquished his interim sporting director role last month — and oversee the work of technical director Christopher Vivell, co-director of recruitment Joe Shields, talent management and development leads Kyle Macaulay and Jim Fraser (who’s also head of youth development), and lead data analyst Matthew Hallam. Hallam is a new name for me, and unfortunately there’s not much information available on him out there.

It looks like Vivell will also have an expanded role once our multi-club operation starts taking shape.

Chelsea’s rundown of the department makes no mention of Neil Bath, who was recently promoted to “Director of Football Development and Operations”. His focus is probably on the football side of things, but it’s weird (to me) to see his former assistant and successor, Jim Fraser mentioned and not also Bath himself.

Anyway, The Athletic has this handy-dandy chart, if you’re a visual learner:

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the We Ain't Got No History Daily Roundup newsletter!

A daily roundup of Chelsea news from We Ain't Got No History