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Tottenham Hotspur have appointed a new director of football operations to join the massive restructuring process at the Premier League club
Tottenham Hotspur have made a new appointment in a key position inside the club with the arrival of Carlos Raphael Moersen as director of football operations.
As part of a huge year of change at the north London outfit, Moersen, known as 'Rafi', has been lured away from the City Football Group, where he spent more than a decade within their large organisation across the world. He will become the second person hired from the City Group in recent months with Dan Lewindon coming in next month to replace Adam Brett as the north London club's new performance director.
Tottenham had also taken former chief football officer Scott Munn from the City Group in 2023 before placing him on gardening leave last year.
Moersen's arrival comes just a day after Spurs announced that one of their sporting directors, Fabio Paratici, would be returning home to Italy to join Fiorentina after his winter window due to a change in personal circumstances.
So exactly who is Moersen, what has he been doing within the City Football Group, who will he report to at Tottenham and will he be replacing Paratici?
What's Moersen's background?
Moersen studied at the George Washington University School of Business for four years before completing a master's degree at the University of Valencia, where his thesis was focused on the expansion of Major League Soccer.
At the same time as completing his initial degree he was employed at MLS side DC United, where he worked his way up from being a sales intern to an account executive with a focus on international sales.
After founding a consultancy firm that specialised in connecting professional and youth clubs in the USA, he was snapped by the City Group and initially worked within New York City Football Club.
Then came the switch to Manchester City, where he worked for four years, eventually becoming their senior sales strategy and development manager before stepping up to the wider group in 2020 to take charge of more focused football affairs, being handed the title in 2024 of director of football transactions.
His role included negotiating contracts with current and prospective City players and now he has negotiated his own move to Tottenham.
When will he officially start at Spurs?
Moersen is currently on gardening leave from the City Football Group, and will join Tottenham in the coming months, in time to be prepared for the summer transfer window.
What will his job entail at Tottenham?
Moersen will lead the north London club's football administration, player care and liaison, as well as training ground operations, and will also join the organisation's executive leadership team. With his experience in contract negotiations it would seem likely that he will take on that role at Spurs.
A key part of his role will also be overseeing women’s football, where we will look to continue their upward curve at both senior and youth levels.
Spurs are hoping that Moersen will add new experience and expertise to their staff as a highly-regarded talent in the industry, having been key in City's core team planning and executing as well as player trading within City Football Group.
Is he replacing Paratici?
In a word, no. Moersen is not a replacement for Paratici as this new role was originally drawn up and announced when the Italian initially returned for his brief stint alongside Johan Lange. He was meant to work with Paratici rather than instead of him.
Moersen will be a core part of the team, working very closely with those in the sporting director role. If anything Moersen will be taking on some elements of the departing Rebecca Caplehorn's position as head of administration and football governance as she will be leaving the club after this transfer window following more than a decade within its walls. Part of her remit was contracts which would future indicate that could be part of Moersen's new job.
Will Paratici be replaced?
The expectation currently is that Tottenham will look to replace Paratici within the organisation, either with someone in a similar title or a new one, after previously making it clear that the modern version of a sporting director's remit is too wide now for just one person.
Who will Moersen report to?
The new man will report to Johan Lange when he arrives before the summer on all things to do with men's football and for women’s football matters Moersen will report to Tottenham CEO Vinai Venkatesham.
What has been said about him?
Lange said: "We are delighted to welcome Rafi to the club in the newly-created role of director of football operations. He was the outstanding candidate from a highly competitive process and brings a wealth of experience in this critical area of our football operation.
"His appointment is an important step as we continue to strengthen our football structure and support long-term success."
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