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Legal Counsel
The FA
The Football Association is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.
Job Posted- 15 Oct 2026
Status- Full Time
Location- England
Closing date- 25 Oct 2026
At The FA, our Legal team plays a vital role in supporting and protecting the game at every level. We're looking for a Legal Counsel to provide trusted legal advice across a broad range of football regulatory, contentious, litigation and strategic matters.
This is an excellent opportunity for a solicitor looking to move in-house, as well as those already working within an in-house legal team. The work is varied, high-profile and often unique to football, offering exposure to complex regulatory issues, stakeholder management, and strategic projects across the organisation.
We're looking for a lawyer who can build strong relationships, provide practical advice and act as a trusted advisor to colleagues across The FA.
What will you be doing?
- Provide legal advice across football regulatory, contentious, litigation, risk and wider legal support matters.
- Support strategic projects across the organisation, helping colleagues navigate legal and regulatory issues.
- Assist with FA rule and regulatory changes, including consultation with football stakeholders.
- Advise on legal and regulatory matters involving key football stakeholders, including FIFA, UEFA, the Premier League, EFL, WSL, PFA and LMA.
- Support The FA's Technical Division on FIFA and UEFA regulatory issues affecting England teams, including disciplinary and eligibility matters.
- Help manage legal disputes and litigation, including the instruction and management of external legal advisers where required.
- Identify and mitigate legal risk while supporting business objectives with pragmatic, solutions-focused advice.
What are we looking for?
- Qualified solicitor with at least 3 years' post-qualification experience, or the ability to demonstrate equivalent relevant skills and experience.
- Experience gained within a leading law firm, an in-house legal team, or a combination of both.
- Strong contentious, regulatory or dispute resolution experience.
- Ability to provide clear, practical and commercially focused legal advice to a range of stakeholders.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex legal issues in a straightforward way.
- Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to build credibility and trusted relationships across the organisation.
- Well organised, proactive and comfortable managing a varied workload with competing priorities.
- Excellent judgement and a collaborative approach to problem solving.
Beneficial to have
- Knowledge of sports law and/or football regulation.
- Experience working in-house or on secondment within a sports organisation.
- Experience advising on regulatory, governance or risk-related matters.
Why join us?
This is a rare opportunity to work on some of the most interesting legal issues in sport. You'll advise on matters that have a direct impact on English football, collaborate with stakeholders across the game and gain exposure to a wide range of regulatory, contentious and strategic work.
Whether you're looking to take your first step in-house or further develop your career within a purpose-led organisation, you'll join a supportive team and play an important role in helping shape the future of the game.
What's in it for you?
We are committed to ensuring everyone can flourish in their roles. To achieve this, we have unique office spaces under the arch of the iconic Wembley National Stadium, which is the home of English Football. We are also delighted to offer a world-class, Elite Performance Centre, St. George's Park in Staffordshire, which is an exceptional setting to develop and inspire high-performing England teams and leaders.
We pride ourselves on offering a competitive salary as well as great opportunities to develop and grow in your role. But that is not all; we also have a range of exciting benefits, some of which can be found below:
- Access to event day tickets at Wembley Stadium, alongside a host of regular internal events throughout the season, encourages you to connect and learn with your colleagues and look after your mental health and well-being.
- Free, nutritious lunches at Wembley Stadium and St. George's Park.
- Private medical cover funded by The FA.
- A contributory pension scheme.
- An additional 'Thank You' day's leave, volunteering days, as well as 25 days of annual leave (based on a full-time, permanent contract)
- A hybrid working model which offers greater flexibility.
How to Apply
Please click “Apply Now” to begin your application.