The owners of Liverpool, Fenway Sports Group, have named former sporting director Michael Edwards as the company’s chief football executive.
After Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp announced his impending departure at the end of the season, Fenway Sports Group initially approached Edwards about returning.
However, he declined their initial offer. Subsequently, more in-depth conversations regarding his potential role occurred in early March.
“Michael is one of the most formidable executive talents in world football,” said FSG president Mike Gordon.
“He returns to us in a role with greater seniority than he held previously and with a wider remit.
“It was clear when we initially reached out to him that a broader scope would be a key motivating factor for any potential return to the industry. In this regard – and many others – his ambitions matched ours.”
Gordon added Edwards “will take over responsibilities I have previously held regarding oversight and management of Liverpool FC’s football operation”.
Edwards joined Liverpool in 2011 and became sporting director in 2016 before leaving the club in summer 2022.
After leaving his previous position, he declined several offers to re-enter the world of football, including opportunities to oversee football operations at Chelsea and Manchester United.
In his new capacity at FSG, he will spearhead a reorganization of football operations at Liverpool, which entails the appointment of a new sporting director. Liverpool has been without a sporting director since Jorg Schmadtke’s departure in January. Richard Hughes, the current technical director at Bournemouth, who is set to step down at the end of the season, is being considered for the role.
The incoming sporting director will then assume responsibility for identifying and recruiting a successor to Klopp.
FSG looking at buying a second club
The offer made to bring Edwards back also included helping to identify and subsequently manage a second club.
“One of the biggest factors in my decision is the commitment to acquire and oversee an additional club, growing this area of their organisation,” said Edwards.
“I believe that to remain competitive, investment and expansion of the current football portfolio is necessary.”
During his tenure as Liverpool’s sporting director, Edwards was instrumental in acquiring several pivotal players, such as goalkeeper Alisson Becker, defender Virgil van Dijk, and forward Mohamed Salah.
Subsequently, the club achieved significant success, securing the Champions League title in 2019 and ending a 30-year wait for a top-flight championship by winning the Premier League in 2020.
Most recently, Edwards has been serving as a consultant for Ludonautics, a sports advisory firm established by Ian Graham, who served as Liverpool’s director of research from 2012 to 2023.
He will conclude his consultancy duties with Ludonautics on June 1st.
“Having served the club previously, I need no reminder of how much emotional investment is made by supporters in the city itself, as well as across the UK and the world,” added Edwards.
“I am looking forward to getting started.”