Arsenal to lose key director next summer

Arsenal fan wearing an Bukayo Saka of Arsenal shirt stands outside the We All Follow The Arsenal stadium wrap around prior to the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Brentford FC at Emirates Stadium on February 11, 2023 in London, England.
(Image credit: Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Arsenal are set to lose a key director next summer, as the Emirates Stadium hierarchy reshuffles.

Chief executive Vinai Venkatesham is set to leave the Gunners after 13 years at the club. He has been in his current role for three years and played a huge role in bringing Mikel Arteta to north London. 

The club is owned by Kroenke Sports Entertainment, with father-son duo Stan and Josh Kroenke running the club. Venkatesham stepped up into a more senior role at Arsenal following the departure of Ivan Gazidis, with former Barcelona chief, Raul Sanlehhi, assisting on the football side of things.

Vinai Venkatesham

Vinai Venkatesham (L) with Raul Sanlehhi (Image credit: PA)

Sanlehhi left in 2020 and was replaced by former Invincible, Edu Gaspar. 

“This was a tough decision, but it is time to pursue another challenge,” Venkatesham told Arsenal.com. “Now is not the time for goodbyes as I remain focused until my last day and supporting a seamless transition.”

“The board is fully supportive of Vinai’s desire to pursue his next challenge, Josh Kroenke commented. “Whilst it is business as usual with everyone focused on the season ahead, we’d like to take this moment to thank him for his contribution and long service. Vinai will always be part of the Arsenal family and always welcome back at Emirates Stadium.”

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta gestures during his side's 3-1 win over Manchester United in September 2023.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is losing a colleague who has been key to bringing him to north London (Image credit: Getty Images)

Immediately before his last promotion in north London, Venkatesham was chief commercial officer at Arsenal. He worked on London 2012 prior to joining Arsenal, and is also currently a non-executive director of the British Olympic Association.

Arsenal play Everton in the Premier League this weekend. 

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Mikel Arteta has revealed the strange marriage metaphor he's used to motivate Kai Havertz. The Basque boss used another bizarre analogy recently to explain his tactics against Manchester City.

And the Gunners boss has had to defend Havertz already this season, notably after the 2-2 draw against Fulham. Meanwhile, Brentford striker Ivan Toney has revealed he would be interested in a move to Arsenal in future.

Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.

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