Next Liverpool CEO Peter Moore signals new direction for the club – six things you need to know
As their team nursed the wounds of a bruising 3-1 defeat to Leicester City on Monday night, Liverpool made an announcement that could have much further-reaching implications than a disappointing loss in the league.
The club revealed that from June its new chief executive will be Peter Moore, currently chief competition officer at video game giants Electronic Arts (EA).
The 62-year-old's arrival marks the culmination of a 10-month "transition plan" by Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) put in place after chief executive Ian Ayre, who leaves for German second-division side 1860 Munich this month, announced his intention to step down last March.
Read more: Bill Gates ignored opportunity to buy Liverpool ahead of 2010 FSG takeover
A scouser by birth and a die-hard Liverpool fan – that's one box ticked for supporters. But after decades working at the cross-sections of sports, sponsorship, technology and entertainment, Moore brings with him a wealth of vital industry experience and contacts to Anfield.
Here's seven things you need to know:
1) He's one of the brains behind Fifa's resurgence as the world's pre-eminent football video game
Fifa is now such a popular video game that the world's best players can earn six-figure sums as professionals while mainstream broadcasters such as BT Sport will show games live.
Yet gamers of a certain generation will remember a time not too long ago when the aficionado's game of choice was Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer which was lauded for its superior game-play while Fifa was derided for too heavily relying on its superior array of licensing rights.
As chief operating officer and president of EA Sports, Moore oversaw the company's increased focus on the game and successful experiments in new features such as online gaming and extra content. That includes Fifa Ultimate Team, a feature which allows gamers to spend their own money to build better teams and earned the company around $650m (£523m) in 2015 alone.
According to Michael Broughton, partner and co-founder at Sports Investment Partners, Moore's "knowledge of how to generate revenues on a repeated basis from a diverse and geographically very disparate fan base/following" could be critical towards the club's future success.
2) He's at the cutting edge of one of the football industry's new frontiers
That experience at EA Sports puts Moore at the forefront of eSports, a burgeoning new sector that football clubs are recognising offers a great opportunity for fan engagement and pushing brand awareness.
Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, West Ham, Schalke and Ajax have all signed official Fifa players to represent the clubs at competitive events in recent years as Moore was establishing EA's first competitive gaming division.
(Source: Getty)
3) He listens to fans' feedback
If there's an online tribe as vociferous and vocal with their criticism as football supporters, it's probably video games fans. Yet Peter Moore hasn't shied away from taking on fans' feedback and responding, even though that's meant having to filter through some horrific abuse at times.
Whether or not direct communication on social media will continue at Liverpool remains to be seen, yet Moore regularly read gaming blogs and forums while at EA and used review aggregators such as MetaCritic as a barometer of success.
4) He's worked with Liverpool before
With broadcast revenue distributed relatively equally and matchday revenue flatlining, commercial revenue has become the crucial battleground for football clubs to gain an edge on their rivals.
So it's just as well for Liverpool then that Moore has experience here too having spent two decades at Reebok where he led the brand's kit manufacturing deal with the club.
5) His role will differ to Ian Ayre's
However, while outgoing chief Ian Ayre was at the forefront of securing the club's lucrative £20m-a-season with Standard Chartered in 2010, the majority of this work will be handled by Billy Hogan, who has been promoted from commercial director to chief commercial officer.
Similarly, while Ayre sat on Liverpool's infamous six-man "transfer committee" to rule on player incomings and outgoings, the majority of recruitment work is set to be handled by analytics guru Michael Edwards who has been promoted to sporting director.
6) He's been parodied on South Park
And not very favourably. Enjoy…