Opinion | Mark Sutcliffe to leave Hong Kong FA: how has the CEO performed in the role since he was hired in 2012?
As he prepares to vacate the role, we look at the key areas the Englishman was expected to improve in when he was made HKFA CEO
He replaced the HKFA’s first ever CEO, Gordon McKie, who left after just eight months, and took over the remainder of his three-year contract.
Sutcliffe arrived in the midst of the multimillion-dollar Project Phoenix, a multi-point three-year plan he helped devise as a ‘change agent’ to overhaul Hong Kong football. The price tag brought increased public and press scrutiny.
It has been a transparent reign, with Sutcliffe blogging on his own site and also using platforms such as LinkedIn to chart the progress of Project Phoenix, but not without criticism.
There have been ups and downs and clashes with vested interests, but it’s fair to say he has left the HKFA and local football in a much better position than he found it.
Sutcliffe leaves as he arrived, with a replacement facing a limited period (until 2020) with a pre-existing plan in the middle of it being carried out.
