At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the technical vision for our backend systems and drive innovative projects.
- Company: Join Fanatics, a global leader in digital sports platforms.
- Benefits: Enjoy remote work options, competitive salary, and a home office setup stipend.
- Other info: Thriving environment with opportunities for growth and innovation.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in the sports industry while working with cutting-edge technology.
- Qualifications: 8+ years in backend development with expertise in blockchain and distributed systems.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.
About Us
Fanatics is building a leading global digital sports platform. We ignite the passions of global sports fans and maximize the presence and reach for our hundreds of sports partners globally by offering products and services across Fanatics Commerce, Fanatics Collectibles, and Fanatics Betting & Gaming, allowing sports fans to Buy, Collect, and Bet.
Through the Fanatics platform, sports fans can buy licensed fan gear, jerseys, lifestyle and streetwear products, headwear, and hardgoods; collect physical and digital trading cards, sports memorabilia, and other digital assets; and bet as the company builds its Sportsbook and iGaming platform. Fanatics has an established database of over 100 million global sports fans; a global partner network with approximately 900 sports properties, including major national and international professional sports leagues, players associations, teams, colleges, college conferences and retail partners, 2,500 athletes and celebrities, and 200 exclusive athletes; and over 2,000 retail locations, including its Lids retail stores. Our more than 22,000 employees are committed to relentlessly enhancing the fan experience and delighting sports fans globally.
About Fanatics Markets
Fanatics Markets is the real‑money prediction and trading app where you can invest in moments you care about. Built on a secure platform, we let users predict real‑world outcomes and trade on events they actually follow - from sports and entertainment to political elections and beyond. Our mission is to redefine how fans engage with the moments and markets that matter most. We're looking for the right people to help us build the future of prediction markets.
Overview
This Staff Software Engineer (Backend) role is a high‑impact IC responsible for setting the technical vision and architectural direction for our core markets and trading platform. You’ll join a true 0 to 1 team, driving the technical strategy, defining long‑term system architecture, and establishing the engineering standards for the entire backend organization. You will be responsible for architecting and scaling systems that can handle millions of events daily and ensuring the platform’s reliability, correctness, and auditability.
On the engineering side, we’re pioneering the use of AI as a code collaborator. We need engineers who will define the organisational strategy for AI‑assisted development, driving adoption of tools like Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, GitHub Copilot, or similar across multiple teams to ensure exceptional quality and maximum development velocity.
Responsibilities
- Define and own the long‑term technical strategy and architecture for our mission‑critical backend services in Go.
- Drive cross‑organizational alignment and technical strategy for our markets and trading platform, partnering closely with product and engineering teams to deliver robust, observable, and maintainable systems.
- Define the technical scope and success metrics for major, multi‑quarter initiatives.
- Serve as the technical lead for critical backend projects, ensuring successful end‑to‑end delivery.
- Architect and scale our experimentation capabilities (feature flags, A/B tests) to support rapid, high‑volume testing across critical trading and markets services.
- Own and drive the architectural vision for data modelling and management (markets, orders, transactions), ensuring absolute correctness, integrity, and regulatory auditability across all data stores.
- Define the architecture for reliable and fault‑tolerant ingestion pipelines, integrating on‑chain and off‑chain data sources for blockchain event processing and real‑time querying.
- Elevate and own the production reliability strategy, including defining high‑level SLOs, establishing best practices for monitoring/alerting, and leading the incident response process for core platform services.
- Elevate engineering excellence by conducting rigorous code and architectural design reviews, and proactively setting technical standards across the team and adjacent backend domains.
- Define and evangelise the company‑wide strategy and tooling for AI‑assisted software development, ensuring best‑in‑class security, correctness, and performance for backend systems.
- Act as a technical multiplier in a fast‑paced 0 to 1 environment, actively unblocking complex cross‑functional challenges, and driving initiatives to improve team efficiency and scalability.
Qualifications
- 8+ years experience building highly scalable, high‑performance backend applications or distributed systems.
- Deep expertise and architectural experience building blockchain dApps or services integrating with EVM or Solana (ideally production experience).
- Expertise in architectural patterns for querying, indexing, and reconciling blockchain data at scale.
- Deep, recognised expertise in PostgreSQL, including advanced optimisation, complex data modelling, and transaction integrity for financial systems.
- Proven track record of designing, deploying, and owning mission‑critical event‑driven architectures (Kafka, PubSub, or similar) at high volume.
- Serve as the domain expert on distributed systems design, setting and enforcing organisational standards for software design principles (e.g., SOLID, DRY) and testing methodologies.
- Expertise in API design and architectural governance, driving integration strategy across internal and external partners.
- Expertise in defining and optimising CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and safe deployment practices for large‑scale backend services.
- Proven track record of owning and delivering platform‑wide performance and reliability improvements.
- Demonstrated expertise in leveraging AI tools (Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, etc.) to drive organisational productivity improvements, can articulate and quantify the strategic impact of AI tooling on the development lifecycle.
- Exceptional ability to communicate, influence, and align technical vision across diverse audiences, including executive leadership, product, and engineering teams.
- Demonstrated success in driving alignment on complex, multi‑team backend projects within large enterprise environments.
- Thrives in a high‑growth environment where priorities evolve regularly and decisions are made quickly.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience using Go in production environments.
- Significant previous experience in 0 to 1 or high‑growth startup environments.
- Extensive contributions to open‑source projects or the technical community.
- Experience with real‑money transaction systems and regulatory compliance.
- Demonstrated impact in building developer tools or improving engineering productivity at an organisational level.
- Proven ability to lead technical direction across multiple teams and domains.
Benefits
Remote employee may also be eligible for a home office setup stipend.
Staff Software Engineer - Backend in London employer: Fanatics
At Fanatics, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and innovative work culture, particularly for our Staff Software Engineers. With a commitment to employee growth, we offer opportunities to lead cutting-edge projects in a fast-paced environment while leveraging the latest AI technologies. Our global presence and focus on enhancing the fan experience ensure that you will be part of a passionate team dedicated to redefining the sports engagement landscape.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Staff Software Engineer - Backend in London
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to folks in your industry on LinkedIn or at events. A friendly chat can open doors that applications alone can't.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for those interviews! Research the company, understand their products, and be ready to discuss how your skills can help them achieve their goals. Show them you’re not just another candidate!
✨Tip Number 3
Practice makes perfect! Do mock interviews with friends or use online platforms. The more comfortable you are talking about your experience, the better you'll perform when it counts.
✨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, we love seeing candidates who take that extra step!
We think you need these skills to ace Staff Software Engineer - Backend in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV:Make sure your CV is tailored to the Staff Software Engineer role. Highlight your experience with backend systems, especially in Go and blockchain technologies. We want to see how your skills align with our mission at Fanatics!
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter:Your cover letter is your chance to shine! Share your passion for sports and technology, and explain why you’re excited about joining Fanatics. Let us know how you can contribute to our vision of redefining fan engagement.
Showcase Your Projects:If you've worked on relevant projects, don’t hold back! Include links to your GitHub or any open-source contributions. We love seeing practical examples of your work and how you tackle complex challenges.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way to ensure your application gets into the right hands. Plus, it shows us you’re serious about joining our team at Fanatics!
How to prepare for a job interview at Fanatics
✨Know Your Tech Stack
Make sure you’re well-versed in the technologies mentioned in the job description, especially Go and PostgreSQL. Brush up on your knowledge of blockchain dApps and event-driven architectures, as these are crucial for the role.
✨Showcase Your Problem-Solving Skills
Prepare to discuss specific challenges you've faced in previous roles, particularly around scaling systems or improving performance. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answers and highlight your impact.
✨Understand the Company’s Vision
Familiarise yourself with Fanatics' mission and how they engage sports fans. Be ready to discuss how your technical vision aligns with their goals, especially regarding AI-assisted development and enhancing user experiences.
✨Ask Insightful Questions
Prepare thoughtful questions that demonstrate your interest in the role and the company. Inquire about their current challenges in backend architecture or how they envision the future of their trading platform. This shows you're engaged and thinking critically about the position.
