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Peter Varney
Peter Varney
Associates Limited
An experienced business executive, Peter's working career began at Lewisham Council, where he progressed from an administration role to hold a number of senior management positions.
He moved on to Sport England and spent five years at the organisation, rising to National Centres Co-ordinator to manage the privatisation of the five national sports centres.
In 1993, Peter became Director of the British Brain and Spine Foundation and established it as one of the most high-profile national neurological charities, with major fundraising programmes in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
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In 1997, he joined Charlton Athletic Football Club as managing director - a dream job for Peter, who, like his father, had been a boyhood supporter of the Addicks. Peter was promoted to the position of Chief Executive a year later.
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With Peter managing the business strategy and Alan Curbishley as manager, Charlton Athletic enjoyed one of the most successful periods in its history.
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The business grew from a turnover of £4million in 1997 to £42million in 2007 and the club spent eight of the eleven seasons from 1997 to 2008 in the Premier League.
During his time as Chief Executive, Peter managed ten share issues which generated in excess of £25million and he played a pivotal role developing The Valley into the 27,000 capacity modern all-seater stadium it is today.
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Among his proudest achievements, Peter oversaw the formation of the Charlton Athletic Community Trust and was integral to its development into one of the biggest football related charities in the UK. The trust has delivered pioneering programmes across South East London and Kent since 1992, helping thousands of children as well as improving levels of education and employment, reducing crime and improving health.
Peter left his position as Chief Executive of Charlton, after almost 11 years at the helm, in 2008. He briefly returned to The Valley in 2009, accepting a request from then Chairman Richard Murray to manage a £10million bond issue which was vital to protecting the future of the club.
He then began to take on a number of consultancy projects but, following Charlton's fall into League One, organised and succesfully instigated a takeover of the club on behalf of a group of investors and again returned to The Valley as Executive Vice Chairman in January 2011. He initiated the return of Chris Powell to the club as first-team manager and, by the end of the 2011-12 season, Charlton had secured promotion back to the Championship by winning League One with a record 101 points.
In early 2013, Peter took up an offer to become Chief Executive of KEH Sports Ltd, a subsidiary of Kuwaiti European Holdings, and successfully negotiated a takeover of Ebbsfleet United Football Club on their behalf. He was appointed to the role of Executive Vice Chairman of Ebbsfleet in the summer of 2013. Ebbsfleet won promotion to the National League under KEH's ownership in 2017.
Peter stood down as CEO of KEH Sports Ltd and Ebbsfleet United Vice Chairman in early 2018, taking on a number of consultancy projects within football and the wider business world.
He served as chairman of Integral Sports Management from 2020-2022, helping set the foundations for the company to become a leader in sports management in the UK.
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