Diagram showing a tilt shift lens with labels for different parts.

OUR TEAM

World-Class Staff, Proven Pathways

Our full-time coaching staff and wider team bring elite experience from the Premier League, La Liga, and Women’s Super League. With backgrounds in football, education, and business, they deliver excellence whilst being fully invested in each player’s journey. Having played and coached at the highest levels, they know what it takes to reach the top

Our Team by Numbers

1000+

professional matches played across the Premier League, Football League, La Liga, and Women’s Super League

100+

international caps for senior national teams

20+

UEFA A and B Licence holders across outfield and goalkeeping, plus advanced qualifications in psychology, sport science, physiotherapy, and performance analysis

40+

roles held at leading professional football academies and football clubs from London, Spain, and across Europe

25+

academic experts with doctorates, master’s degrees, and accreditations from top universities such as Loughborough, Birmingham, and Exeter

Together, our staff bring world-class expertise to support every player’s journey - on the pitch, in the classroom, and beyond.

LEADERSHIP

Greg Thurstans

CEO | Co-Founder

Greg Thurstans is a UEFA ‘A’ Licence coach, qualified goalkeeping coach, and former Crystal Palace Academy coach who also scouted for Brighton FC. As one of the youngest to achieve both UEFA “A” Licence courses, he co-founded AF Global Football to create pathways that develop players both academically and athletically.

Matthew Rose

COO | Co-Founder

Matthew Rose is a former Arsenal first-team player, under the tuition of Arsene Wenger, and England U21 international with over 300 appearances for QPR. After heading Arsenal’s European Academy and coaching Barnsley FC’s first team, he co-founded AF Global Football, where he leads operations and designs programmes that prepare players for success on and off the pitch.

Joe Sutton

Head of Futures/Mentoring

Joe is a high-performance leader with experience at Arsenal, Manchester United, Brighton, Brentford, and Fulham. He’s worked with elite talent, including Bukayo Saka, and specialises in and creating pathways to professional football, US College’s, and UK Universities . Joe holds the UEFA A Licence, Advanced Youth Award and FA talent ID Level 4 in Leadership & Management.

Head of People & Culture

Gemma has extensive international experience leading people strategy and cultural transformation in elite sport and beyond. She previously served as Head of People and Culture at Birmingham City FC, working with leadership teams to build inclusive, high-performing environments. A Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and professional business coach, Gemma combines deep HR expertise with practical insight into the demands of football organisations.

Gemma Richardson

OPPERATIONS

Trevor Bumstead

Academy Manager

Trevor is a highly experienced football professional and UEFA A licensed coach, with nearly 20 years in the professional game. He has worked with leading clubs including Arsenal and West Ham United, building extensive expertise across coaching, player development, and performance leadership. During this time, he has supported the development of top talent, including England and US internationals Folarin Balogun and Declan Rice.

Jake Locker

Head of Sport Science

Jake holds an MSc in Strength and Conditioning from Loughborough University. A former strength and conditioning coach at Leicester City FC, he is working towards UKSCA and BASES accreditation. Jake specialises in applying sport science principles to optimise player performance and development.

Neale Manning

Head of Goalkeeping

Neale has over 12 years of experience coaching goalkeepers at Chelsea, West Ham, and Charlton Athletic. He is currently Southern area lead Goalkeeper Scout for Manchester City. Neale holds both the UEFA B Outfield and Goalkeeping Licences, underlining his expertise in goalkeeper development.

MARKETING

Keiran Anderson

Head of Brand & Marketing

25+ yrs leading brand, marketing and digital innovation across sports and lifestyle sectors. Specialist in elevating fan engagement, sponsorship, and campaign strategy, integrating 360° brand experiences and digital-first storytelling. Proven record growing global audiences and commercial value through strategic content, live events, and cross‑platform campaigns.

Jude Samuel

Head of Digital Production

20+ yrs in sports & entertainment leading digital, brand, and talent. Ex-Bellator & ViacomCBS. Expert in 360° campaigns, social growth, creative content, and Customer Engagement & Experience. Proven ROI across live events, talent media, and digital platforms.

TRUSTEES

Louise Baxter MBE

Fundraising
Louise Baxter is a nationally recognised consumer protection leader with over 20 years’ experience advocating for vulnerable communities. Her expertise spans regulation, fraud prevention, and safeguarding across sectors. She chairs two national Consumer Protection Panels and serves as a Non-Executive Director at TrustMark and The Property Ombudsman, promoting safer, more inclusive services. As CEO of Consumer Friend, she leads outreach and training to empower individuals with the knowledge to protect themselves and others. A trusted media contributor and campaigner for fairness, resilience, and equality, Louise was awarded an MBE in 2017 for protecting vulnerable consumers from financial abuse.
Emma Thompson

Legal
Emma is a Managing Partner at leading UK law firm Thackray Williams. Emma is also Head of the Education, Employment and Corporate & Commercial sector and oversees strategic recruitment. As a qualified lawyer with over 18 years’ experience in employment law, Emma’s expertise in this field is recognised by being personally listed as a ‘leading individual’ for employment law in Chambers. This year Emma was awarded the Growth Award at the Kent Women In Business Awards 2025 having led the Commercial Group to achieve 46% year-on-year growth in turnover for the first six months of last year.
Teddie Levenfiche

Marketing
Teddie is a member of Forbes 30 under 30, founder of PerfectTed the UK’s fastest- growing energy drink. He has had a meteoric journey from getting 5 offers in Dragons’ Den, to investment from Steven Bartlett, and now becoming the new sponsor to Steven’s podcast, Diary of a CEO. Steven Bartlett has called Perfect Ted his most successful investment.
Tony Asghar

Football
Tony is a highly innovative and creative sports executive and high performance specialist with over 25 years experience within global elite football as a consultant to elite sporting organisations, professional football clubs, governing bodies and business leaders. Brokered and advised on a number of high profile football club acquisition’s in the UK, France, USA, Spain and Italy. Carrying out full club diagnostics and performance plans. Executive coach for a number of high profile managers and football staff from the EPL, Championship, La Liga and other associations and networks throughout the world.