He will focus on developing new premium longform video projects and talent-led productions as executive producer

Grant Best Ronaldo Prem

BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning producer and director Grant Best has joined Footballco to spearhead its push into longform video.

Best will work across Footballco’s global brands, including GOAL, Kooora (Middle East), Calciomercato (Italy), Voetbalzone (Netherlands), and Spox (Germany). Its portfolio also includes the football culture brand, MUNDIAL and women’s football platform, INDIVISA.

Across its platforms, Footballco video content is viewed more than one billion times each month, with its content including fan-focused brands, such as Front Three and Fanzone in the UK, as well as similar IP in international markets, including Italy (1vs1) and the Middle East (Yalla GOAL).

At Footballco, Best will focus on developing new premium long-form video projects and talent-led productions as executive producer.

He will report to Footballco’s EVP of content and operations, James Lamon.

Best received a BAFTA for his work on Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum & Dad (BBC1) and a Sports Emmy for his work on ESPN/Disney/ABC’s World Cup coverage.

His other credits include Floodlights (BBC 1); Ronaldo Nazário’s World Cup story : O Fenômeno (DAZN/Globo/BBC); Sylvester Stallone’s One Night (DAZN); and Eva Longoria’s La Guerra Civil, which premiered at Sundance.

Lamon said: “As we’ve seen with the success of projects like Drive to Survive and Welcome to Wrexham, sports fans old and new are being drawn to long-form sports storytelling like never before. The best of these projects grow the fandom itself by introducing new audiences to sport.

“With over 30 years of global broadcasting and content creation experience across all media, Grant’s expertise will be invaluable in growing Footballco’s premium video output across our brands and taking our storytelling to another level.”

Best added: “Footballco excels when it comes to engaging fans across football editorial, entertainment and storytelling. I’m eager to work with the team to take this to the next level on video and grip fans with the stories that football serves so well.”