He replaces Philippe Le Floc'h, who oversaw World Cup sponsor sales since 2016 and is returning to Malaysia for personal reasons and to continue his career in the Asian region.

An acknowledged expert and highly experienced figure in the sports marketing industry, Thomas was previously chief executive of TEAM Marketing, where he was instrumental in driving significant growth in UEFA's main club competitions, including the Champions League. 

He worked for other high-profile sports organisations, such as Nike, and was responsible for the sales, production and broadcast of the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games.

Subsequent to TEAM, Thomas became global head of sport for the international Fox Sports Channel and most recently has been operating his own boutique sales and marketing agency, Talisman Sport & Media.

FIFA state he has very strong leadership credentials and a track record of implementing organisational change.

"We are delighted to be bringing Simon on board," Fatma Samoura, FIFA's secretary general, said.

"His appointment further confirms FIFA's commitment to forge ahead with the development of our in-house capabilities, the growth of our competitions, and the management of our sporting assets.

"We believe that we are building the right team to take FIFA to the next level and extract the full potential from a diverse and dynamic media and sponsorship marketplace, the results of which will be invested straight back into the development of football across the entire world.

"We also thank Philippe for his valuable contribution over the years and look forward to continuing to work with him in the future."

Thomas will be tasked with shaping a commercial strategy for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

FIFA lost several top sponsors following the 2014 World Cup in Brazil after corruption allegations and other scandals, and currently has eight 2022 sponsors in the top two tiers, which have normally included 12 to 14 deals.