Director of Engineering in London

Director of Engineering in London

London Full-Time 72000 - 108000 ÂŁ / year (est.) No home office possible
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At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead engineering teams to deliver innovative sports media products and drive operational excellence.
  • Company: Join FairPlay Sports Media, a leader in sports tech and media with a fun, inclusive culture.
  • Benefits: Enjoy subsidised Sky packages, free gym membership, healthcare, and a generous training fund.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact in a fast-paced, tech-driven environment while growing your career.
  • Qualifications: Proven experience in leading engineering teams and strong systems architecture skills.
  • Other info: We're committed to diversity and encourage all passionate candidates to apply.

The predicted salary is between 72000 - 108000 ÂŁ per year.

We're a sports media network, focused on building and nurturing a portfolio of highly engaged and connected communities of sports fans and bettors to create value for our partners. We empower sports fans with real-time intelligence, premium independent content, and unique tools so they can compete in the sports betting game. FairPlay Sports Media is a collection of market leading brands including oddschecker, WhoScored, SuperScommesse, FairPlay Technologies and Confido. In addition, FairPlay has a vast network across the sports tech and media industries through our partnerships including Reach, Gazzetta dello Sport, DAZN, SportsGrid and The Jockey Club amongst others. iGaming is one of the fastest-growing and most technologically innovative sectors, and we're on top of our game, powered by market-leading tech and driven by brilliant people. We champion diversity and operate an open and inclusive culture as well as being focused, fast-paced, and always making sure to have fun along the way.

FairPlay Sports Media is building a tech-led, AI- and data-powered sports media network that serves both owned brands (e.g., oddschecker, WhoScored.com, SuperScommesse, and others) and partners with BetTech products spanning data, display, and predictive capabilities. At FairPlay scale—real-time data, high-frequency updates, and partner integrations—you'll lead multiple engineering teams to deliver reliable, compliant, high-throughput product execution.

What you’ll do

  • Your team is your product — you’re accountable for team health, hiring, delivery outcomes, and cross-functional alignment, while remaining technically credible enough to guide architecture and trade-offs.
  • Lead and grow high-performing teams.
  • Lead multiple squads through Engineering Managers and senior ICs; build an org that can ship consistently across brands and partner-facing platforms.
  • Own hiring strategy and capacity planning, focusing recruitment where it unlocks the most leverage.
  • Coach Engineering Managers and senior engineers; create clarity, accountability, and psychological safety.
  • Be accountable for predictable delivery of roadmap commitments across BetTech products (Data, Display, Predictive) and shared platform capabilities.
  • Increase throughput without sacrificing reliability—improving planning discipline, sequencing, and removing systemic blockers.
  • Drive operational excellence for high-traffic, high-frequency systems (e.g., real-time odds/pricing and rapid data updates).
  • Create a consistent, high-trust interface between Engineering and Product (and, as needed, Commercial/Partnerships), translating strategy into executable plans.
  • Partner closely with data/AI stakeholders—especially as FairPlay expands predictive AI, pricing, and behavioral data-led products through FairPlay Technologies / FairPlay AI.
  • Enable partner integrations and "white-label" deployments where required, ensuring a smooth path from contract → integration → measurable value.
  • Guide architectural decisions across APIs, data pipelines, ML-enabled products, and front-end components/widgets—ensuring systems are secure, observable, and cost-effective.
  • Sponsor engineering-wide standards where helpful, while allowing local variation where it accelerates outcomes.
  • Define, measure, and improve the metrics that matter (delivery, reliability, quality, and org health).
  • Establish lightweight governance: clear ownership, incident learnings, technical debt management, and documentation that stays current.

What success looks like (example performance indicators)

  • Hiring actual vs. plan for critical teams/skills.
  • Delivery throughput & predictability: roadmap commitments met with stable scope/quality.
  • Cycle time / lead time: reduced time from idea → production; fewer blocked work items.
  • Reliability: improved uptime, incident rates, and mean time to restore (MTTR), especially for real-time feeds and partner-facing APIs.
  • Data & latency SLAs: sustained performance at high-frequency update rates and real-time pricing/odds experiences.
  • Documentation/operational readiness: runbooks, on-call hygiene, and key technical docs kept current.

What we’re looking for

  • Proven experience leading multiple engineering teams (typically via Engineering Managers) in a product-led, high-availability environment.
  • Strong systems and architecture judgment—able to broker high-level technical decisions and trade-offs across teams.
  • Solid grasp of the DevOps lifecycle and delivery automation (CI/CD), with a track record of improving engineering productivity.
  • Experience building platforms or products that integrate with external partners (APIs, SDKs, embeddable components), ideally in data rich domains.

Nice to have

  • Experience in regulated or compliance-sensitive markets (or adjacent industries) with strong operational discipline.
  • Exposure to data/ML product delivery (feature pipelines, model deployment patterns, experimentation frameworks), especially where AI-driven insights are core to the product.
  • Familiarity with high-traffic consumer products alongside B2B SaaS/partner distribution models.

Working style

You bring clarity to ambiguous problems and drive execution/direction across functions. You communicate well up and down the org—aligning exec stakeholders while staying close enough to the work to unblock teams quickly. You care deeply about building a healthy, inclusive engineering culture where teams can do the best work of their careers.

What you’ll get back from us

  • Subsidized Sky HD package, broadband and discounted sky talk.
  • Free Puregym membership.
  • Free healthcare with Bupa, life assurance and income protection.
  • Pension scheme with up to 9% contribution from the company.
  • ÂŁ1,000 training fund each financial year, to spend on your professional development.
  • Unlimited holiday plan.

Research shows that women and ethnic minorities are less likely to apply if they don’t meet every qualification. If you’re passionate about our purpose, determined to face challenges, and eager to learn, we encourage you to apply even if you don’t tick every box. We’re committed to building a diverse, inclusive team and ensuring an accessible recruitment process. If you need any accommodations, please let us know.

Director of Engineering in London employer: FairPlay Sports Media

At FairPlay Sports Media, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that champions diversity and fosters an inclusive, fast-paced work culture. Located in a vibrant tech hub, we offer our employees unparalleled growth opportunities, including a generous training fund and unlimited holiday plan, all while working on cutting-edge technology in the rapidly evolving iGaming sector. Join us to be part of a dynamic team where your contributions are valued, and you can truly make an impact in the sports media landscape.
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Contact Detail:

FairPlay Sports Media Recruiting Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫

We think this is how you could land Director of Engineering in London

✨Tip Number 1

Network like a pro! Get out there and connect with folks in the sports media and tech scene. Attend industry events, join relevant online communities, and don’t be shy about reaching out to people on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings!

✨Tip Number 2

Show off your skills! If you’ve got a portfolio or any projects that highlight your engineering prowess, make sure to share them during interviews. This is your chance to demonstrate how you can lead teams and drive results at FairPlay.

✨Tip Number 3

Prepare for those tricky questions! Research common interview questions for Director of Engineering roles and practice your responses. Think about how your experience aligns with FairPlay’s mission and values, especially around building high-performing teams and delivering reliable products.

✨Tip Number 4

Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re genuinely interested in being part of the FairPlay family. Let’s get you on board!

We think you need these skills to ace Director of Engineering in London

Leadership
Team Management
Technical Credibility
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Hiring Strategy
Capacity Planning
Coaching and Mentoring
Delivery Execution
Operational Excellence
Architectural Decision-Making
API Development
Data Pipeline Management
DevOps Lifecycle Understanding
CI/CD Practices
Performance Metrics Definition

Some tips for your application 🫡

Tailor Your Application: Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter to highlight how your experience aligns with the Director of Engineering role. We want to see how you can bring your unique skills to our tech-led, AI-powered sports media network.

Showcase Your Leadership Skills: As a Director of Engineering, you'll be leading multiple teams. Use your application to demonstrate your past experiences in building high-performing teams and driving successful project outcomes. We love seeing examples of how you've fostered team health and collaboration.

Be Clear and Concise: When writing your application, keep it straightforward and to the point. We appreciate clarity, so make sure your achievements and qualifications shine through without unnecessary fluff. Remember, we’re looking for someone who can communicate effectively across all levels.

Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to submit your application directly through our website. This way, you’ll ensure it reaches the right people and gets the attention it deserves. Plus, it’s super easy and quick!

How to prepare for a job interview at FairPlay Sports Media

✨Know Your Tech Inside Out

As a Director of Engineering, you'll need to demonstrate your technical credibility. Brush up on the latest trends in AI, data pipelines, and DevOps practices. Be ready to discuss how you've made architectural decisions in past roles and how they impacted delivery outcomes.

✨Showcase Your Leadership Style

This role is all about leading high-performing teams. Prepare examples of how you've coached engineering managers and fostered a culture of accountability and psychological safety. Highlight specific instances where your leadership directly contributed to team success.

✨Understand the Business Context

FairPlay operates in a fast-paced sports media environment. Familiarise yourself with their brands and products, and think about how your engineering strategies can align with their business goals. Be ready to discuss how you can drive operational excellence in high-traffic systems.

✨Prepare for Cross-Functional Collaboration

You'll need to create strong interfaces between engineering and other departments. Think about how you've successfully partnered with product and commercial teams in the past. Be prepared to share your approach to translating strategy into executable plans that deliver measurable value.

Director of Engineering in London
FairPlay Sports Media
Location: London

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