Role coverage
Sporting directors: who we cover
The people who sign off transfers. MercatoHQ tracks sporting directors, technical directors and directors of football club by club, with direct contact details for members.
At most professional clubs the sporting director owns the incoming transfer list. They decide which positions get budget, which agents get a reply, and whether a player goes to the coach as a serious option or into a shortlist nobody revisits.
That makes them the single most valuable contact for an agent or intermediary — and the hardest to reach, because club switchboards and generic recruitment inboxes exist specifically to filter them. Job titles vary by country: sporting director in England and the Netherlands, directeur sportif in France, Sportdirektor in Germany, director deportivo in Spain, all doing broadly the same job.
We keep one record per person, tied to the club and competition they currently work for, and re-check it when a club changes structure mid-season.
Job titles included
Direct contact channels unlocked for members
Leagues with the deepest coverage
Sporting directors by country
Open a country to see the clubs on file there and which of them are recruiting.
Sporting directors: common questions
How do I find a club's sporting director?
Start from the club's page in our coverage index, confirm the current title-holder, then use the member view to open their verified WhatsApp line. Club websites usually list only a generic recruitment inbox, which is why most cold pitches never land.
Should I contact the sporting director or the head coach first?
For a transfer or loan, the sporting director. Coaches rarely control budget and will forward a pitch to the director anyway — going straight there saves a week and one round of dilution.
Are the records kept current when directors move clubs?
Yes. Records are reviewed on an ongoing basis and members can flag any record for re-verification, which sends it into our review queue.