Chelsea, the English Premier League soccer club, have confirmed the appointment of Tottenham Hotspur’s Todd Kline to lead their commercial operations.
Kline officially began in his new role as the West London-based club’s president of commercial yesterday (November 11) after completing a period of gardening leave at Tottenham.
Go deeper with GlobalData
News of his decision to join Chelsea first emerged in February after he resigned as Tottenham’s chief commercial officer.
Kline takes over from Tom Glick who left his role as president of business last year after just 10 months.
Originally from the US, Kline first joined Tottenham in March 2021, after previously working as a senior vice president at the William Morris Endeavor (WME) agency. There, he served as senior vice president for sports talent and property sales.
Before that, he held roles at the Washington Commanders and at the Miami Dolphins (where he brought in Hard Rock as a naming partner for the team's stadium in a lucrative deal), both from American football's NFL.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataChelsea have gone through a period of significant executive-level change since the club's takeover by a consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in May 2022 for £4.25 billion ($5.4 billion).
Most recently, chief executive Chris Jurasek departed the club after 15 months in the role, with former chief operating officer Jason Gannon named as his successor in September.
Prior to that, Casper Stylsvig joined Chelsea as chief revenue officer from Italian giants AC Milan late last year.
Just months after taking control of the club, the Boehly-Clearlake consortium hired Damian Willoughby as commercial director but fired him just weeks later after finding evidence that he had sent “inappropriate messages” to a finance agent.
In his new role, Kline will be tasked with securing a new front-of-shirt sponsor for Chelsea as the team has been without a primary partner for the opening three months of the new campaign.
The club did, however, manage to bring in a new sleeve sponsor (Fever) and training kit sponsor (BingX).
