Sales Manager Conference and Events

• Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, American Express Stadium, Village Way, Brighton BN1 9BL
• £highly competitive + excellent bonus and benefits
• 40hrs pw 5/7 with flexibility to cover events
• Flexible Benefits fund of £1,300 to utilise across an array of benefits
• Free Lunches, free parking

We’re looking for an ambitious and commercially driven Sales Manager to lead Conference & Events sales at the American Express Stadium, home of Brighton & Hove Albion FC.

This is a sales leadership role with real commercial ownership. You will be accountable for driving the venue’s Conference & Events revenue, leading a high-performing sales team and building a strong, sustainable pipeline across both new and existing customers.

We’re looking for someone who doesn’t simply respond to demand but creates it.

You’ll understand your market, identify where the opportunities are, develop new client relationships and ensure every opportunity is maximised through a disciplined and effective sales process.

Working closely with the wider Sodexo Live! Sales & Marketing team and venue leadership, you’ll help position the American Express Stadium as a leading year-round destination for conferences, meetings, corporate events, dinners, celebrations and large-scale experiences.

• Take commercial ownership of the venue’s Conference & Events sales performance and annual revenue budget.
• Lead, coach and develop the venue sales team, setting clear expectations, targets and accountability for performance.
• Build and execute a proactive sales plan that identifies target sectors, accounts and new revenue opportunities.
• Drive new business activity through prospecting, networking, partnerships, agency relationships and direct client engagement.
• Develop and grow existing client relationships, identifying opportunities for repeat business and increased account value.
• Maintain a healthy, qualified sales pipeline with clear visibility of opportunities, conversion and future revenue.
• Own forecasting accuracy and understand performance against budget, identifying gaps early and implementing clear tactical actions to close them.
• Drive strong conversion across inbound enquiries while ensuring the team consistently follows an effective sales process.
• Use CRM, market insight and sales data to understand performance and turn insight into action.
• Develop strategic relationships with key clients and personally lead significant and high-value opportunities.
• Identify opportunities to grow non-matchday utilisation of the stadium, including the Terrace and wider event spaces.
• Work collaboratively with Marketing to create demand, target priority audiences and develop campaigns that support the commercial plan.
• Partner with Operations, Culinary, Finance and other venue teams to ensure we sell experiences that can be delivered brilliantly for our clients.
• Champion a culture of pace, ownership, collaboration and continuous improvement.

You’ll be a Sales Leader who enjoys both developing people and winning business.

You’ll be comfortable with numbers and commercial performance, but equally comfortable getting into the market, meeting clients and creating opportunities.

• A strong track record in Conference & Events, hospitality, venues, hotels, stadia or a related B2B sales environment.
• Evidence of delivering revenue growth and challenging sales targets.
• Strong proactive business development capability alongside experience of managing inbound sales conversion.
• Excellent pipeline management, forecasting and CRM discipline.
• Experience developing key and strategic accounts.
• The ability to identify commercial opportunities and translate them into clear sales actions.
• Strong coaching and people leadership skills, with the confidence to set expectations and hold people accountable.
• Excellent stakeholder management and the ability to work effectively across Sales, Marketing and Operations.
• Energy, curiosity and a genuine passion for winning business and creating exceptional client experiences.

Above all, we’re looking for someone who wants to take ownership, someone who understands their numbers, understands their market and is excited by the opportunity to grow an exceptional venue.