Newcastle release 10-minute interview with Darren Eales - A great watch as CEO departs

After over three years as the club’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Darren Eales has formally departed from his role at Newcastle United and been succeeded by David Hopkinson, who was previously Head of Partnerships at Real Madrid.

Almost a year ago to the day, the club announced that Eales would be stepping down from his role having been diagnosed with a chronic form of blood cancer, for which has he recently started treatment at the Freeman Hospital.

Although a divisive figure to small numbers of the fanbase, Eales’ time on Tyneside will ultimately go down as a success as we have grown into a renowned force in the Premier League, and are slowly becoming a commercial powerhouse compared to where we were just a few years ago.

And in one final interview, Eales has expressed his thanks to the fans for their support of both him and the club over the last three years, and has his say on where he thinks the club is headed in the future.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5_hjO0IFcM

On smooth handover to David Hopkinson

With an entire year passing between the initial announcement that Eales would be stepping down and the 53-year-old’s formal departure, there’s been plenty of time for the club to get the right man in to replace Eales.

David Hopkinson brings a wealth of experience to the role as well as a genuine passion for the sport. And Eales feels that the Canadian will excel as his replacement.

“David’s come in with enthusiasm, and he’s going to be great for the club. I know him a little bit from his time in Toronto. I was at Atlanta as President, and he was part of the commercial department of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. So I know he’s going to take it on with vigour, and I’m excited to see what’s going to go on here.”

“In terms of transition, the ownership have been wonderful, particularly when I had to go on medical leave at the end of June, and great people have stepped up in my absence and really filled the breach.”

On receiving support from the locals

Much like Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi when they were still involved with the club, Eales is an individual who has received a lot of love by the fans ever since his appointment.

Having been very much the ‘face’ and mouthpiece of the club to the fans and wider media, Eales has earned a lot of respect for his transparency and commitment to helping the club grow and grow, and he has certainly felt the fans’ appreciation firsthand.

“It’s been great. You know, walking around the city, the people that have come up and given me support, and just given me encouragement, that really has helped.”

“We speak about it when I’m in the Freeman, I see the Sir Bobby Robson Clinical Trial Centre there. The club is just bound up with the community, and so that’s really helped me through with a difficult time.”

On fondest memories from tenure

As CEO, Eales has overseen some of the biggest and most eventful days in our recent history, recalling the “incredible” scenes he’s felt lucky to have witnessed.

“I think you know, on the pitch, two Wembley finals is amazing. But obviously the second one, beating Liverpool and winning that first major trophy for over 50 years was incredible.”

“I remember thinking about taking this role and talking to my wife and saying “You know, if Newcastle do get a trophy, you won’t believe what it will mean to this city.”

“Well then we had the parade, and the city sort of outdid itself and really blew my mind. I remember that day, everything from people on signposts, people hanging from the lampposts, we had people there carrying lads and lasses on their shoulders. It was incredible those scenes.”

“And I think that whole day just brought home how important the club is to this city and to this region, and it’s something that will always sort of live in my mind.”

Alongside the Carabao Cup celebrations, Eales recounts the 4-1 win over PSG at St James’ Park, the development of the women’s team, and a staff Bongo’s Bingo night as some more of his personal highlights.

On current commercial situation

Where improving the team on the pitch has been perhaps the top priority for Eales and the rest of the club’s executive figures, a close second has been focusing on boosting the club’s revenue streams and establishing new commercial opportunities.

Having to grapple with PSR for the entirety of his tenure as CEO, Eales and the commercial team have had the unenviable task of helping a team that were in a relegation struggle to a financially stable side competing for European football season after season, and it looks like they’ve done a fantastic job at it if Eales’ numbers are any indicator.

“In terms of revenue, we’ve gone from £140m in 2021, to the coming season, because we’re in the Champions League, it’s going to be well north of £400m. So that’s a compound annual growth rate of over 24%, which is unprecedented in world football.”

And beneath these surface level figures, Eales is ecstatic that the club has been able to grow to employ more staff, re-do the main club shop alongside Adidas, and open the popular Stack development opposite St James’ Park.

On staying connected to the club after his departure

Committed to staying in the North East whilst he undergoes his treatment for the next nine months, Eales hopes to maintain a strong connection and bond with the club as we continue to flourish.

And as a parting gift to the staff and management, Eales has given them a rather unorthodox gift.

“I came up with an idea which almost forces everyone to keep in touch with me…I gave them a share in a racehorse. It’s a horse that, if things go really well to plan, is running the derby in 2027.”

Being allowed to name their racehorse, Eales wanted something that perfectly represented Newcastle and the North East, before settling on a simply brilliant name.

“The only caveat was that it had to start with the letter G, because the dam started with a letter G.”

“And so I thought to myself, what’s bigger and better than Big Dan Burn? Giant Dan Burn! So we’re calling it Giant Dan Burn.”

“Dan’s been great about it because I had to get his permission to use his name. So we’ve agreed that his share we’re going to give to the Newcastle United Foundation and I’ve given my share to Bright Red, which is a charity organisation for people with blood cancer in the North East to help their progress and their treatment.”