“The expansion of our recruitment strategy has just started, we have to earn the rights to take new steps”

• Lincoln City have benefited from external funding from American investors, but the money will not be spent on player wages. Instead, the club is overhauling its recruitment strategy.
• “Thanks to our improved financial position, we can now think long term instead of relying on miracles every transfer window. We have secured a group of players on long-term contracts,” says director of football Jez George.
• Why it matters: Most clubs below the Championship operate on tight budgets, constantly balancing income and costs. Lincoln City are determined to break free from the “short-term swamp” and build a foundation where defeats do not derail long-term plans.
• The perspective: Post-Brexit, English clubs face limited options for recruiting foreign talent. Lincoln City are now looking to Scandinavia but must carefully manage risks when entering a new market.

By Kasper Kronenberg , co-founder

Lincoln City, one of the UK’s fastest-rising clubs over the past decade, continues to push for progress—most recently by focusing on developing a sustainable player trading model.

In 2015, Lincoln City FC were a National League side. Since then, they have established themselves as a solid League One club, once again competing just below the play-off positions this season.

In June 2021, the US-based Jabara family invested in the club, later increasing their stake to 30.57 per cent. In April this year, further American capital was injected when businessman and baseball investor Ron Fowler acquired an 18.97 per cent stake.

This additional financial backing has strengthened the club’s ability to invest in its sporting operations. However, the funds have not been allocated to increasing the wage budget to push harder for promotion.

“The robust financial structure of the club has enabled us to invest in players. The cost base and the wage structure have remained the same, but where we used to make loan-deals and free signings, now we can pay fees,” says Jez George , Director of Football at the club, which is located less than 2 hour by train North of London.

Significantly changed market

The director of football is very honest saying that it is not easy to establish a player trading model, however it is a strategic priority for the club. Lincoln City had a turnover of €7.9 million and a loss of €3.15 million in their 2022/23 accounts.

CEO Liam Scully explains that in the coming years the club aim to reduce their dependency on broadcasting by creating innovative revenue streams, growing their commercial income while also enhancing matchday revenue.

“All of which we believe has significant growth potential,” he says.

“A further aim is to continue to develop a trading model that allows us to reinvest in players with higher potential that either make the squad more competitive to compete or can be sold at a profit.”

Scully says that this was evidenced by the club’s sporting department in the summer generating significant transfer fees for two players each with one year remaining on their contracts. These players were originally purchased below market value.

Jez George and his colleagues in the sporting department are working to ensure they have the expertise needed to develop a successful player trading model. Over the summer, they appointed Jack Coles, formerly Head of Data Analysis at Coventry City, as Head of Recruitment to enhance their approach in the increasingly dynamic transfer market.

“The market has changed significantly over the last 18 months. The domestic market, which we know well, remains important, but we can now look to buy players from outside the UK. To succeed in that journey, we need someone like Jack to identify talent through data,” says Jez George.

He takes a balanced view, acknowledging that while data plays a crucial role, scouts are still essential to watch players live and, importantly, meet with them to assess whether they possess the personality that aligns with Lincoln City’s values.

“We are fortunate that we are now in a situation, where we can actually afford to pay a transfer fee, which hasn’t always been the case at this football club.

"But still financial resources are limited so we need to make sure that the coaching staff is fully focused on winning as many games as possible out of the 50+ games they play between August and April, while in this period Jack and his team can get a lot of legwork done in terms of identifying those talents, which could improve our squad in the summer transfer window.”

Financial value is key

The Director of Football emphasises the importance of alignment between the coaching staff and the recruitment team—perhaps more so than at many other clubs.

“When we decide to invest in a player, we must be absolutely certain that he fits perfectly into what the manager is looking for. There’s always a risk that a new signing won’t succeed, but we cannot afford to pay transfer fees only to see those players sit on the bench due to a lack of communication between the coaching staff and recruitment,” says Jez George.

The approach is clear: if a player is not playing regularly and cannot eventually be sold for a profit, “…then it has simply been a cost for us. There are other departments at this club highly skilled at tuning investments into profit, so we must ensure our transfers generate financial value for us.”

To begin with, Lincoln City have focused on the Scandinavian market—primarily Denmark, Sweden, and Norway—where players have stood out in recent years when the club has searched for specific player profiles outside the UK.

Head of Recruitment Jack Coles notes that Lincoln have had success with Scandinavian players in recent years, highlighting that English is also widely spoken as a second language in these countries, aiding their integration.

“We have built some momentum in that market, and when you know what you’re doing in a specific region, there’s simply less risk of making a poor signing,” says Jez George.

Slow process

Despite their growing familiarity with Scandinavian football and its players, George acknowledges they are still in the early stages of their work in the region.

“We still have a lot to do in these countries. You need to build a network among agents, sporting directors, club owners, etc. It’s a slow process, but it’s essential. You can’t just identify a player through data, fly in, and sign him. It doesn’t work like that—at least not with our budgets,” says the Director of Football.

Q: Should Scandinavia be considered a test market while you prepare to expand into new regions?

“The expansion of our recruitment strategy has just started, we have to earn the rights to take new steps,” George says.

He stresses the importance of being realistic when entering a new market. Lincolns’ record transfer was Harry Toffolo leaving for Huddersfield in January 2020. Since then the Lasse Sorensen transfer this summer, also to Huddersfield, has been one of their biggest sales. The Dane was sold for a fee in the region of €0.5 million.

While Lincoln City have some experience in Scandinavia it remains very different from the Irish market, where the club has conducted transfers for decades.

So many small factors can go wrong

Jack Coles, Head of Recruitment, highlights the inherent risks of signing new players, underscoring the need for thorough due diligence when venturing into unfamiliar regions.

“Even after we’ve done everything possible to research a player, there’s still only a 90 per cent chance he’ll succeed because he needs to adapt to a new playing style. There’s also a chance the manager doesn’t favour him. On top of that, both the player’s mentality and skills need to align in the new environment," he says continuing.

"My point is: There are so many small factors that can go wrong. Imagine if we went to an African country and signed players without understanding the culture or football— the risks would simply be far too great for us as a club,” Coles explains.

For George, a key factor over the coming years is alignment across the entire club—including ownership—on the need for patience in the transfer market.

“We are fortunate to have patient and intelligent owners who understand that new players might not deliver in their first week, or even their first year, at a club. That’s why we aim to sign players on four- or five-year contracts. It gives us protection and time to realise their resale value. If we can get that engine working, we’ll be able to plan long term instead of relying on miracles every transfer window. Now, we have a group of players on long contracts,” says George.

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