Academy Scout (North London)

Location: Remote (with regular travel)
Contract: FTC
Hours: 20 hours per week across 4 days from 7, including Saturday and Sunday

Closing date: 1st October 2026

We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the position may be filled before the listed closing date. To avoid missing out, please submit your application at your earliest convenience.

At Chelsea FC, finding and developing exceptional young players is at the heart of our continued success. We're looking for a passionate and knowledgeable Academy Scout (Local) to play a key role in identifying future talent across the grassroots and academy landscape.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced scout with strong local football knowledge, established networks, and a keen eye for potential. Working as part of our Academy Recruitment team, you will provide high-quality player intelligence, recommendations, and insights that help shape the future of one of the world's leading football academies.

Whether you're watching live matches, analysing footage, building relationships across the football community, or contributing to recruitment discussions, you'll have a direct impact on the identification of future Chelsea players.

What You'll Be Doing

• Attend live fixtures and review match footage to identify and assess players aged U13 and above.
• Produce detailed, objective player reports in line with Chelsea FC scouting standards and timelines.
• Provide evidence-based player recommendations supported by clear and robust rationale.
• Create and manage video clips of targeted players to support recruitment discussions and decision-making.
• Support the development of player target lists and presentations for senior recruitment staff.
• Gather background information, contextual intelligence, and character insights on players of interest.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records within internal scouting databases.
• Attend tournaments, showcase events, and fixtures as directed by the recruitment leadership team.
• Contribute to recruitment meetings, player reviews, and ongoing professional development sessions.
• Support wider Academy Recruitment projects and initiatives as required.

What We're Looking For

• Essential Experience & Knowledge
• Scouting experience within a professional football environment.
• Strong understanding of academy football, youth development pathways, and player progression.
• Extensive knowledge of your geographic scouting area and its football landscape.
• Established network of contacts across grassroots, academy, and elite youth football.
• Experience producing high-quality scouting reports with excellent attention to detail.
• Ability to communicate recommendations and insights confidently to senior stakeholders.
• Strong IT skills, including Microsoft Office, and the ability to learn internal scouting systems.

Qualifications

• FA Level 2 Talent ID Qualification or UEFA B Coaching Licence.
• Full UK driving licence.

Our Expectations:

• To embody the club’s BLUE behaviours (Brave, Lead, Unity, Edge) in the approach to work and interaction with others
• To adhere to the club’s policies and procedures, including Health & Safety, Financial Authorisation, Confidentiality and GDPR.
• To act as an ambassador for diversity, equality, and inclusion, and demonstrate a positive commitment by treating others fairly in line with our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy and reporting any acts of discrimination through appropriate channels
• To create a safe environment and act to protect all young people and vulnerable adults that are either in your care or attending club premises, and report any concerns to the Safeguarding Lead
• To report any misconduct or suspected misconduct to the HR Department

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

At Chelsea we recognise that the diversity of our people is one of our greatest strengths and we are taking positive action to ensure our existing colleagues and job applicants can fully be themselves and bring their own unique experiences and perspectives to Chelsea FC. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity.   

If you need reasonable adjustments made to the recruitment process, please reach out to your recruiter, who will be able to advise and support you.

Chelsea FC is fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all children, young people and adults at risk (vulnerable groups). We therefore require all successful applicants to complete a DBS Check prior to starting employment. Depending on the role, successful applicants may also be required to undergo other child protection screening where appropriate.