Country Manager UAE

Dubai based preferred (exceptional remote candidates considered) · Full-timeAbout Stranger SoccerStranger Soccer is the mobile app that lets people play football across the UAE. We run 200+ recreational games every month across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ajman — reaching 30,000+ players. Browse, book a slot, turn up, and play.The OpportunityWe’re hiring a Country Manager to run and build Stranger Soccer UAE end-to-end. This isn’t a role managing an existing business — it’s a chance to lead a scaling sports-tech business from A to Z, own its P&L, launch its next revenue lines, and build the brand into something tens of thousands of players depend on every week.If you’ve ever wanted to run your own business but weren’t ready to start from zero — this is the closest you’ll get. Real P&L ownership, direct line to the CEO, strategic autonomy.What you’ll ownFull P&L — monthly revenue, gross and net marginGrowth — Meta Ads, SEO, social, retention, pricing strategySupply — venue acquisition and relationships, host hiring and managementTeam leadership — ops, field growth, hostsProduct partnership with HQ — primary voice-of-UAE to our Singapore product team, leading the UAE feature roadmap in tandem with the CEOCustomer escalations — disputes, complaints, high-judgement situationsFinance, compliance and legal — payment approvals, insurance, T&Cs, licensingLaunch at least one new line of business in Year 1 — a new revenue stream that didn’t exist beforeWho we’re looking forThis is a step-up role for a hungry mid-career operator. If you’ve been running a function or sub-function for 3-5 years and are ready to own the whole business for the first time — this is your shot. We’d rather bet on someone making their first jump into full ownership than hire a seasoned GM looking for stability.A street-smart hustler with the discipline of a real business manager. As comfortable sitting across from a venue owner closing a pitch deal as you are building a P&L in a spreadsheet. You roll your sleeves up for the unglamorous work — chasing a cancelled booking, fixing a broken SOP, walking a new host through their first game — but you also think like a business owner.You’ll make the structural calls on team and process — when to hire, when to delegate, when to automate, when to buy a piece of tech. You’ll spot when something is quietly eating too much of your time and needs a structural fix, not more effort. That business nuance — knowing when to work in the business vs. on the business — is the single most important thing we’re hiring for.Specifically:2-5+ years in operations, consumer, marketplace or startupBuilder, not just operator — you’ve launched something new before (a product line, market or channel)Hands-on hustle — you’ve personally negotiated deals, closed partnerships, solved on-ground problemsGrit and diplomatic range — manage up to a CEO, sideways to a HQ product team, down to a frontline host, all in the same dayNumbers brain — you build SOPs because you’ve seen chaos; you read a P&L and know where margin is leakingUAE-based strongly preferred. Exceptional candidates based elsewhere who can run the business remotely with the right on-ground team in place also considered.A real love for football — this isn’t a role for someone running a business they don’t care aboutIf you’re a pure strategy person who’s never dealt with a difficult venue owner at 7 pm — this isn’t the role. If you’re already running a country or market at a larger company — this isn’t a lateral move; we’re hiring the next generation of leaders, not one who’s already there. If you want a stable, predictable role with the processes already built — definitely not it. If you want to walk into chaos and make it structured — welcome.Why lead Stranger Soccer?A to Z ownership — strategy, ops, marketing, product, finance, team. A decade of experience in a year.Real, visible impact — walk into any pitch in the UAE and see your business running liveSports-tech is growing fast in the GCC — forefront of a defining categoryNo bureaucracy — decisions made fast, direct line to the CEOThe timing — biggest season ever, new revenue lines launching, next 12 months set the trajectory for the next 5