Graham Kelly

Graham Kelly was born on December 23, 1945, in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. He began his career in football administration, demonstrating a progression through various roles. He served as the secretary of The Football League from 1978 to 1989. Following this, he became the first Chief Executive of The Football Association (FA) in 1989, a position he held until 1998. During his tenure, he played a key role in the administrative oversight of English football.

His period at the FA included significant events such as the rebuilding efforts following the Heysel stadium disaster, the Bradford City stadium fire, and the Hillsborough disaster. He was also involved in securing and staging Euro 96 in England. A notable turning point in his career was his resignation in December 1998, alongside chairman Keith Wiseman, amidst allegations concerning a loan from the FA to the Football Association of Wales. Following an investigation by FIFA in 1999, both Kelly and Wiseman were cleared of any wrongdoing.

Beyond his administrative roles, Kelly has also been credited as an actor, primarily providing voice work for football management video games. He voiced the ‘Cup Draw Announcer’ in titles such as LMA Manager (2000), LMA Manager 2001 (2001), LMA Manager 2002 (2002), and LMA Manager 2003 (2002). He also appeared as ‘Self – Chief Executive, FA’ and ‘Self – Secretary, Football League’ in two episodes of ‘Match of the Day’ between 1980 and 1993.