Sunderland go Dutch to appoint new commercial chief

12:04am Tuesday 2nd December 2008

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Sunderland are set to announce the appointment of Dutchman Chris Woerts to spearhead the club's commercial operations The Northern Echo can exclusively reveal.

Reports from Holland confirm that 49-year-old Woerts has joined The Black Cats from Dutch club Feyenoord where he had worked as Commercial Director for the last eight years.

The appointment is thought to be a major coup for Sunderland with chairman Niall Quinn and majority shareholder Ellis Short employing a firm of headhunters to find a suitable candidate to help develop the club's commercial arm.

Woerts has a proven track record for exploiting marketing opportunities and is believed to have been approached by Liverpool last year to undertake a similar role.

The Dutchman comes with an extensive network of business contacts and boasts an impressive CV having previously worked for drinks giants Heineken and Coca Cola.

His move to Sunderland is further evidence of the more commercially-focused approach being employed by the Wearsiders since American investor Ellis Short took a controlling stake in the club.