Head of Impact & Sustainability - UK & Ireland 2028 Limited

Fixed Term Contract - April 2025 to Autumn 2028

The Tournament
Contested every four years, the UEFA European Championship has been showcasing the continent's top talent since its inception in 1960 and is the world's third largest sporting event.

UEFA EURO 2028 is taking place across the UK & Ireland where Europe's top 24 national teams will compete in a 31-day, 51 match tournament, attended by over 3 million spectators and with a global tv audience of upwards of 2 billion people.

As one of the world's largest and highest-profile sporting events, UEFA EURO 2028 will attract the attention of the sporting and major event communities, the media, and the public at large across the UK&I, Europe and the World.

The Organisation
UK & Ireland 2028 Limited has been set up as a new company to locally deliver several UEFA requirements for the tournament, working closely with UEFA, 9 Host Stadiums, 8 Host Cities and other key stakeholders.

The Role
An incredible opportunity has arisen to play a pivotal role in driving positive and meaningful impact from one of the world's leading sport events.

Heading up the Impact & Sustainability Team for UK & Ireland2028 Limited, you will be at the centre of the creation, coordination and communication of the UEFA EURO 2028 social impact and environmental sustainability programmes. Working closely with tournament stakeholders including football partners, government partners and UEFA, you will provide leadership within UK&I 2028 Limited to integrate impact and sustainability into the everyday work practices of the organisation, and to coordinate the delivery of programmes across the partnership.

Reporting to the Director of Host Relations, the successful candidate will be passionate about the power of events and collaborative working to deliver positive impacts to communities across the UK and Ireland. You will have exceptional stakeholder relationship skills, be forward looking and highly driven to achieve success.

What will you be doing?

• Working with UEFA, Football Associations, Government Partners and Host Cities to jointly develop and deliver integrated social impact and environmental sustainability programmes in alignment with the tournament vision and priorities.
• Collaborate across a wide range of internal and external stakeholders to produce, monitor and deliver a robust environmental sustainability strategy, ensuring positive sustainability practices are fully embedded in tournament planning and delivery in accordance with agreed standards.
• Drive the coordination, communication and amplification of the UK&I 2028 Impact & Legacy Programme, working with delivery partners to ensure commitments are met.
• Represent UK&I 2028 on the cross-partner evaluation working group to design and deliver a tournament evaluation programme.
• Work with the host cities, stadiums and other key tournament stakeholders to support them in the implementation of sustainable event management practices.
• Set-up agreed governance structures and ensure regular and accurate reporting into the UK&I 2028 Senior Management Team and Board.
• Execute additional tasks as required to meet changing priorities.
• Comply with all company policies and procedures to ensure the highest standards of health, safety and wellbeing can be maintained.

What are we looking for?

Essential Skills & Experience

• Proven track record in managing the implementation of high impact social and/or environmental sustainability programmes, ideally in a major events environment.
• Exceptional stakeholder relationship skills and experience of collaborating and maximising value from complex multi-agency projects.
• A deep understanding of the opportunities and challenges in the fields of social impact and environmental sustainability.
• Experience of developing, implementing and evaluating strategic programmes whilst retaining focus on the practical delivery of measurable outcomes.
• Working knowledge and appreciation of the importance of successfully developing and integrating meaningful equality, diversity & inclusion principles and practices across multiple delivery partners.
• Experience of working with sustainability event management systems.
• Experience of leading and inspiring a small team and managing budgets.

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Knowledge and experience of delivering against the Sustainable Development Goals, international standards and certifications.
• Experience of developing and working with agencies to create and deliver a public facing communications plan/campaign.
• Working knowledge of the operational delivery of major events, ideally multi-venue events / tournaments.
• Experience of working with public sector partners.

Why apply?
We offer a competitive salary (plus benefits of 25 days holiday, contributory pension, Private Medical Insurance etc), which coupled with the opportunity to be part of one of the biggest sporting events to ever take place across UK & Ireland we think makes for an exciting place to be!

Where is the role based?
Our head office is based at the iconic Wembley Stadium in London, however depending on your role you may be required to travel across the UK and Ireland to our 9 Stadiums and 8 Host Cities, with some roles being based in those locations. As an event delivery organisation, it's important that we have regular time together in the office and currently employees come together at least 2 days a week at HQ in Wembley, with the number of days in HQ increasing as the project develops with a minimum of 3-4 days needed in 2026-2027 and full time in the year of 2028.

Everyone is welcome
UK & Ireland 2028 Limited actively promotes diversity and inclusion and welcome applications from everyone. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer. If you have any particular requirements in respect of the recruitment or interview process, please mention this during your application.

As part of UK & Ireland 2028 Limited's commitment to ensuring a safe environment for everyone, every employee will be required to complete a DBS check. The level of the check required will be based on the activity of the specific job role and in line with legislation and government guidance.