The Commercial Director for YouGov Sport UK, leads the commercial strategy and sales execution for one of the most important industry divisions within the international market research and data analytics firm, YouGov. The Commercial Director will manage and develop a high‑performing commercial team within Sport UK while personally driving strategic new business across the sport and sport‑adjacent ecosystem.
The Commercial Director Sport UK will excel at selling market‑leading research, data and analytics solutions, and at translating complex insight into clear commercial value for rightsholders, brands, agencies, and media owners. This role requires a self‑starter who thrives in a collaborative environment, champions consultative selling, and consistently delivers against ambitious growth targets. The successful postholder will report directly to the Head of YouGov Sport UK, and work in collaboration with other senior colleagues across YouGov Sport and the wider YouGov business.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead, coach, and develop a team of sales executives to deliver against individual and collective sales and revenue targets
- Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement across the commercial function
- Set clear performance expectations, provide ongoing feedback, and support professional development
Business Development & Revenue Growth
- Own and deliver a personal sales and revenue target alongside team targets
- Build and execute strategic outreach plans to acquire new clients across priority sectors (rightsholders, brands, agencies, media owners)
- Conduct high‑quality discovery conversations to accurately qualify opportunities and understand client objectives
- Navigate complex sales cycles, combining media monitoring and valuation solutions, subscription‑based syndicated data tools/platforms, custom research methodologies (quantitative/qualitative), and deep consumer insight
- Present compelling, insight‑led proposals that demonstrate how YouGov and YouGov Sport’s solutions drive marketing, sponsorship, and commercial decision‑making
- Lead negotiations and close business to meet or exceed quarterly and annual sales and revenue goals
Client & Market Insight
- Quickly synthesise data and align client needs with the appropriate YouGov Sport and YouGov data solutions
- Use YouGov’s subscription‑based syndicated data tools/platforms and other data sources to tell clear, evidence‑based stories that resonate with senior marketers, sponsorship leaders, and research specialists
- Draw on case studies, industry knowledge, and personal experience to demonstrate the impact of data‑driven decision‑making
- Maintain a strong understanding of sport, sponsorship and media landscape, including emerging trends and commercial drivers
Operational Excellence
- Ensure accurate sales and revenue forecasting, pipeline management, and outbound/inbound activity tracking across a range of platforms including Salesforce, Gong, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, and PowerBI
- Contribute to cross‑functional collaboration with research, product, marketing, and operations teams to deliver best‑in‑class client solutions
- Represent YouGov Sport at industry events, conferences, and trade shows
What You’ll Bring
- Degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field (or equivalent experience)
- 7+ years’ experience in consumer insights, market research or data‑driven SaaS sales, ideally within the sport or sponsorship industry
- Proven track record of selling subscription‑based or syndicated data products
- Strong consultative selling skills, with the ability to uncover client needs and translate them into actionable solutions
- Excellent communication, presentation, and relationship‑building abilities
- Demonstrated experience managing complex sales cycles and engaging senior stakeholders
- Proficiency with Salesforce (or equivalent CRM / revenue enablement tools) for pipeline management, forecasting, and performance analysis
- Willingness to travel for client meetings and industry events
- A genuine passion for sport and the business of sport
Join our global team to help us achieve our social mission: to make millions of people’s opinions heard for the benefit of our local, national, and international communities.
Understanding diversity of opinion requires diversity of background. Although our global panel of millions of people worldwide powers our research, our biggest asset is our people. If our research is to be truly representative of what the world thinks, we need people from all walks of life to be part of the team to bring their perspective to the work we do.
Life at YouGov
We are driven by a set of shared values. We are fast, fearless, and innovative. We work diligently to get it right. We are guided by accuracy, ethics, and proven methodologies. We respect and trust each other, bringing these values into everything that we do.
We strive to provide YouGovers with best‑in‑class benefits to support their physical, financial, and emotional wellbeing. We want our employees to have a sense of belonging and uniqueness in a supportive workplace, so they can bring their full selves to work.
Equal Opportunity Employer
As an Equal Opportunity Employer, qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity or expression, and sexual orientation), parental status, national origin, marital status, age, disability, genetic information, HIV status, political affiliation, socioeconomic background, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law or in line with our responsibilities as a fair and ethic employer. All employment decisions are made based on occupational qualifications, merit, and business need.
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