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Paul Barber, OBE, the CEO of Brighton & Hove Albion FC \u2013 from a childhood dream of being a pro-player to a highly successful career across Football from the FA of England, Tottenham (his childhood club) to becoming the CEO of the Year in the Premier League, driving Brighton to new heights (including European Football action) in the most competitive Football League in the world. \xa0\n\xa0\nKey Highlights\nFootball his first love from age of 7, dream to be a pro player but didn\u2019t have the talent.\xa0 Love being involved in the game\nFrom working with blue chip financial organizations (Barclays) to the world of Football with the FA as Director of Marketing in 2000\nGreat time to be in the FA, first director of marketing, David Beckham era and other major changes \u2013 2002 Japan/Korea World Cup new team marketingLarge portfolio of companies and sponsors, taking England team on the road across the country\n\nApplied for CEO of FA, didn\u2019t happen at the time and moved to Ogilvy & Mather as CEO of Europe/Middle East for a short sting\nNext Football stop, Tottenham Hotspurs as Executive Director \u2013 childhood dream working with the club he grew up supportingOwner Daniel Levy and working with him\nOne of the first teams signing a big Betting company as Jersey sponsor and how to deal with the sensitivity\nPeace Cup in Korea\n\nNext stop, CEO of Vancouver Whitecaps FC \u2013 two years in the MLS \u2013 great learnings\nTaking the role of CEO at Brighton, when they were still in the Championship in 2012 \u2013 a hundred year old \u201cstart up\u201dVision of Tony Bloom convinced him to join\nMissed out on Premier League promotion before finally making it up to the top division\nBig American Express deal as Venue sponsor\n\nOvernight success, 7-8 years in the making \u2013 the journey and stories along the wayAll starts with a great owner \u2013 clear vision, value\nBest infrastructure, top training facilities, stadium\nMake changes and upgrade along the way, including people\nA bit of luck important too\nIgnore the \u201cnoise\u201d by media/fans and stay focused on vision/mission\n\nHow do you compete with the huge foreign capital other big clubs have at their disposal \u2013 8-10 clubs now pushing to play in Europe in the Premier League\nCompeting in European Football (UEFA Europa League) and keeping sight of top half in League \u2013 constant learning \u2013 competing in four competitions\nTony Bloom \u2013 Moneyball in Football -\xa0 data driven recruitment (resources and data from David\u2019s core analytics business)Also creating opportunities to sell players with good margins\nVery engaged Non-Executive Chairman, stability is key\n\nTarget to be a top 10 club in Premier league and top 4 team in Women\u2019s Super League -\xa0 still work in progressKeep improving and not standing still\n\nWomen\u2019s Team discussion \u2013 development of women\u2019s football \u2013 investment in the game for long-run and the changes a club needs to make to cater the players and fans\n\xa0\nAbout\nPaul Barber joined the board of Brighton & Hove Albion FC as chief executive in June 2012. In his first season with Brighton, the club secured its highest league position for over 30 years, made the Championship play-offs, enjoyed the highest average attendances in its division, and signed its largest-ever shirt sponsorship agreement, a multi-year deal with American Express.\nPaul was named Overall CEO of the Year for England and Scotland, as well as Championship CEO of the Year, at the Football Industry Awards 2013, and won the Sports Executive of the Year at the 2016 International Stadium Business Awards.\nHaving taken part in three EFL Championship play-offs in four seasons, Brighton narrowly missed out on automatic promotion to the Premier League, by virtue of goal difference, in 2016. A year later, the club achieved automatic promotion to the Premier League and subsequently finished 15th in its first season.\nPaul\u2019s career in professional football has spanned close to 25 years, during which time he has held senior positions at Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Tottenham Hotspur FC, and T