James Johnson (born 21 May 1982) is an Australian sports administrator and business person who has been CEO of Football Australia since January 2020.
He is also a non-executive advisory board member of the Association Football Development Program Global chaired by Prince Ali bin Hussein of Jordan.
Johnson spent the early period of his career as a lawyer practicing in the areas corporate law, litigation, and industrial relations.
[5][6] Johnson is well known for his role in securing Australia and New Zealand’s hosting rights for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
[13] He was selected in the Australia squad for the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship but was cut ahead of the tournament due to injury.
After his exit from FIFA, Johnson joined the City Football Group in the UK as a senior vice president of external affairs.
Johnson secured landmark multi-million-dollar sponsorship deals with Commonwealth Bank Australia for the naming rights for the Matildas and Priceline.
In 2020, Johnson secured a 1-year deal for the A-League with Fox Sports in what was described as a “game of chicken” allowing the league to resume a season postponed due to the pandemic.
Johnson has also focused on growing the brand and relevance of the FFA Cup (Australia’s open club knock-out competition) and has brought in strategic changes, including playing on free to air television and reallocating a slot to the Asian Champions League to the FFA Cup winner.