Alison Brittain, the outgoing chief executive of Whitbread, has landed one of the biggest jobs in football.
The 57-year-old Manchester United fan, who is leaving the Premier Inn owner in January after seven years at the top, will take over as the English Premier League’s first female chairman.
The former banker will oversee a competition broadcast to millions around the world. The league’s 20 clubs bring in revenues of more than £4billion a year.
Alison Brittain is leaving the Premier Inn owner Whiutbread in January after seven years at the top and will then take over as chairman of the English Premier League
Her appointment comes at a delicate time after six clubs tried to break away and set up a rival European competition.
The Premier League has also attracted a string of high-profile foreign takeovers, with Brittain’s predecessor Gary Hoffman resigning over his handling of the sale of Newcastle United to the Saudis.
Brittain, a former banker with Barclays, Santander and Lloyds who is now senior independent director at credit scorer Experian and taking over as chairman of furnishings firm Dunelm, said: ‘I have been a football fan since I was a child.’
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