Prominent figure in English football awarded Honorary Degree

Alex worked for leading Advertising Agency Saatchi&Saatchi for almost twenty years and was responsible for several of the Agency’s key clients, including Procter & Gamble, The Health Education Council and Cunard, and helped create the first advertising campaign for a football club - Tottenham Hotspur. 

He designed a European Super League for the Agency’s Italian client, Silvio Berlusconi, and the owner of A.C. Milan, which led to the formation of the Champions League. He went on to write the Commercial Section for the Football Association’s Blueprint for the Future of Football, which led directly to the creation of the Premier League - The Sunday Times called him ‘the spiritual godfather of the Premier League’. 

Co-author of eleven books on the business and politics of football - including two best sellers: Cantona on Cantona and Arsénal: The Making of a Modern Superclub - he has also written for a number of publications, most notably The Observer and The Sunday Times.

Commenting on his award, Alex says: “Thank you to Solent University for the honour you have bestowed on me. The Doctor of Sport degree recognises the value of sport, not least in the way it fulfils the fantasies of both participants and spectators. Sport brings pleasure to millions.”

Alex is a regular speaker to journalism students, sharing his knowledge and experience.