Head of Software Engineering

About the Role

This senior leadership position is responsible for all application development across football and commercial operations, including self-service analytics platforms, bespoke football applications, data visualisation tools, and internal systems that directly support the club's competitive advantage. The post-holder will professionalise the software engineering function, establish modern development practices, and build a team capable of delivering reliable, maintainable, and scalable software in a fast-paced sporting environment. The role sits within the Data & AI group and involves balancing immediate delivery demands with the longer-term goal of building a sustainable engineering culture, working closely with data engineers, data scientists, football operations, commercial, and IT stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and own the software engineering strategy, standards, and roadmap for the Data & AI group, establishing and embedding modern engineering practices including version control, code review, CI/CD, automated testing, and documentation.
• Lead and develop a team of software developers and testers, managing recruitment, performance, individual development, and day-to-day priorities across the engineering function.
• Architect and deliver full-stack web applications that make the club's data accessible, actionable, and valuable, working closely with data engineers and data scientists to surface insights through intuitive platforms.
• Own and evolve the club's central insights platform, embedding powerful data tools and visualisations across football and business functions with a focus on performance, reliability, and user experience.
• Make pragmatic technology choices that balance quality with delivery speed, managing technical debt and ensuring the codebase remains healthy and extensible.
• Collaborate closely with football operations, commercial, and IT stakeholders to understand requirements, prioritise development work, and ensure software products are aligned to the club's strategic priorities.

Required Experience & Qualifications

• Significant experience leading software engineering teams, with a strong track record of building and shipping production applications.
• Deep technical expertise across the full stack, with strong experience in JavaScript/TypeScript, React.js, Node.js, and Python in production environments.
• Proven ability to establish and embed engineering best practices (CI/CD, automated testing, code review, documentation) in teams that are maturing or scaling.
• Experience architecting and delivering data-centric applications and consuming APIs and data services.
• Strong people management skills with a track record of developing engineers, setting clear expectations, and building a culture of quality and accountability.
• Effective communicator who can translate business requirements into technical solutions and work with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Passion for using technology to improve performance in high-performance environments.

Preferred Skills

• Experience integrating with modern cloud platforms such as Azure and Databricks.
• Experience in elite sport, football, or similarly fast-paced operational settings.

Workplace

• Work is based at Manchester United's offices, with an emphasis on working together in person to enable connection and innovation.

Benefits & Perks

• Annual Incentive Scheme to reward dedication and hard work.
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, with an opportunity to purchase additional holiday days.
• Electric Vehicle scheme via Octopus and cycle to work scheme.
• Simplyhealth Cash Plan supporting everyday healthcare needs.
• Wellness support with access to mental health resources, digital health checks, and nutritionists through Aviva Digicare+ Workplace.
• Exclusive discounts through the United Rewards platform, giving access to deals from the club and partners.
• Gym facilities in onsite locations and opportunities for regular social events and team-building activities.
• Enhanced family leave benefits and policies.
• Enhanced career development with access to professional learning platforms such as LinkedIn Learning and internal training programmes.
• A supportive work environment that values diversity, equity and inclusion, and individual growth.