Richard Scudamore
The pragmatic dealmaker who transformed the English Premier League into a global financial and cultural juggernaut.
Born 1959 (age 67)·English sports executive·Birthday: August 11·Baby Boomers
Biography
Richard Scudamore is the executive who understood that football was no longer just a sport, but a premium television product. A former newspaper advertising manager, he brought a blunt, commercial sensibility to the role of Premier League CEO in 1999. His masterstroke was packaging and selling the league's television rights in a way that maximized revenue, famously creating an equal share among clubs to ensure competitive balance and financial growth for all. Under his two-decade stewardship, the Premier League's broadcast income skyrocketed, attracting the world's best players and managers and turning Saturday mornings into a global ritual. Scudamore faced criticism for commercialization and the league's financial disparities, but his relentless focus on the brand's value created unprecedented wealth, reshaping the economics of not just English football, but the global game. He left a league that is less a competition and more a ubiquitous, high-octane entertainment empire.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Richard was born in 1959, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Richard Was Born
The biggest hits of 1959
#1 Movie
Ben-Hur
Best Picture
Ben-Hur
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Richard's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1959Born
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1964Started school
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1972Became a teenager
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1975Could drive
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1977Could vote
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1980Turned 21
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1989Turned 30
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1999Turned 40
Columbine shooting; Y2K panic builds
Gas: $1.17/galHome: $113,900Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Believe" — CherBest Picture: American Beauty
2009Turned 50
Michael Jackson dies; Bitcoin created
Gas: $2.35/galHome: $148,500Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Boom Boom Pow" — The Black Eyed PeasBest Picture: The Hurt Locker
2019Turned 60
First image of a black hole; Hong Kong protests
Gas: $2.60/galHome: $224,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Old Town Road" — Lil Nas XBest Picture: Parasite
2026Age 67 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Oversaw a massive increase in Premier League broadcast revenue, from £670 million per cycle in 2001 to over £8 billion in his final cycle.
- Pioneered the collective selling of TV rights and a more equitable revenue distribution model among top-flight clubs.
- Expanded the Premier League's global broadcast footprint to over 200 territories.
- Awarded a CBE for services to sport in 2017.
Did You Know?
He played professional football briefly as a youth for Bristol City, though his career was cut short by injury.
Before joining the Premier League, he was the chief executive of the Football League.
Upon his retirement, Premier League clubs contributed £5 million for a farewell gift, which he asked be donated to charity.
“We're in the business of putting on a show. We're in the business of entertainment.”
