The Scottish FA has confirmed the appointment of Craig Mulholland as Chief Football Officer.
Responsible for shaping and delivering the vision for football development and performance across Scotland, as a member of the Senior Executive Team, the CFO will lead strategies that elevate elite performance, strengthen grassroots participation and ensure Scotland’s football ecosystem thrives at every level.
He moves back north after serving as Head of Football Development & Talent Management at Nottingham Forest.
Craig’s role involved leading on strategy on both the men’s and women’s side, driving performance and organisational alignment, and he was responsible for all talent pathways, at a time when the club achieved their highest ever English Premier League finish and reached the semi-final of a European competition for the first time in over 40 years on the men’s side, while securing promotion to the WSL2 for the first time with the women’s team.
This is Craig’s second spell with the Scottish FA, having started out as a Football Development Officer, progressing to Senior Youth Development Officer, more than 20 years ago.
From there, he moved to Rangers, spending the last nine years of his career there as Academy Director, heading up a system that produced current Scotland internationals like Billy Gilmour, Liam Kelly and Nathan Patterson.
The Scottish FA’s Chief Executive, Ian Maxwell, said: “We’re delighted to have Craig on board. He was the outstanding candidate from a thorough process.
“This is a critical role within the Scottish FA – and Scottish football in general – so we wanted to make sure that we took our time to find the right individual who can help drive improvements across the board.
“Craig comes highly recommended to us from his position as Head of Football Development & Talent Management at Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League, but we’re equally enthused by his varied experiences in Scottish football.”
Craig Mulholland added: “I am delighted to be joining the Scottish FA at a critical time for the game in our country, which I care passionately about.
“We have the World Cup to look forward to, and that excitement brings the ideal opportunity to implement positive change throughout all areas of our game, building on the many strengths we have as a nation.
“I have loved my time working in the Premier League, where every day you are exposed to the world’s best players and coaches, but when I heard the desire and willingness from Mike, as President, and Ian, as CEO, to really implement an exciting period of growth and change here in Scotland, it was something I was excited about, delighted to accept, and privileged to be asked to lead.”
“I wish Steve and Melissa good luck for the upcoming internationals and I look forward to working with them, and all of the team at the Scottish FA, to build an exciting future with an innovative and creative approach to how we move forward at all levels of the game”