Shola Ameobi reflects on rise from childhood harassment to Newcastle United executive role

Shola Ameobi, the former Newcastle United striker, discussed his progression from experiencing racist harassment as a child in Newcastle to being appointed the club’s head of corporate affairs in July, in an interview published on 22 October 2026. He recounted his playing career statistics — 79 goals in 397 appearances, including seven against Sunderland — as part of the story of moving from academy player to an executive position at his boyhood club.

Ameobi said he moved from Nigeria aged six and grew up in Newcastle during the late 1980s and 1990s, where he faced repeated hostility on the streets. "There were times where I feared for my life as a kid, being harassed and chased by different groups of people," he said. He described having to be cautious travelling between his family home near St James’ Park and the club’s Benwell training base, saying: "It was almost as if I had to hide myself to be able to do what I love to do. It wasn’t a very nice feeling, having to worry about getting from A to B. It was just part of my world. I had to be more aware of my surroundings and what I was doing."

Ameobi traced how those early experiences informed his resilience and career at Newcastle, where he scored 79 goals in 397 appearances and remembered watching Andy Cole and Tino Asprilla; on Asprilla’s 1997 hat-trick he said: "That was the moment where time stood still. It was almost like I said to myself: ‘What’s wrong with you, Shola? You should be giving everything to be there.’" He also noted his pathway through the club’s youth system into the first team and described the importance of visibility for young players.

Since July he has served as Newcastle’s head of corporate affairs, a role he defined as leading on "strategic external engagement" to align club activity with the region and the city’s civic life. The move into the executive team followed a 100-day review by chief executive David Hopkinson; after an initial discussion in which Hopkinson told him to take a weekend to consider the offer, Ameobi pushed back, held further talks across six months and then accepted. He had previously spent seven years as the club’s loans coordinator.

Ameobi said his earlier role, which he began during the Mike Ashley era, involved building the department "from nothing," and that experience helped him understand business planning and team-building. He described his involvement with the Premier League’s Black Participants Advisory Group since 2019, citing achievements that include implementing the No Room for Racism action plan in 2021 and piloting the player to executive pathways scheme in 2022; he was part of the initial seven-strong cohort for that pilot.

Reflecting on the transition away from playing, Ameobi cited career-saving hip surgery in November 2006 as the start of questions about life beyond football: "How can I best be useful to my teammates and this football club? That’s when the cog started turning." He said he worked with a psychologist and relied on his family during difficult periods, and added: "I’ve always been fascinated with leadership, right from an early age," noting his father’s role as a church leader and naming Sir Bobby Robson, who gave him his professional debut aged 18, and Alan Pardew, who managed him at Newcastle and Crystal Palace, as influences.

Ameobi holds a master’s in strategic leadership and, speaking at an event for supporters’ group The Black Geordie Club, he emphasised his intent to use his position to support others. "You need to feel like you belong, you need to see yourself there, and I think that is so important when it comes to inspiration," he said, adding: "Part of the reason that I want to continue to push myself is because, yes, I want to be successful, but I want to show that anything’s possible if you’ve got the hunger, irrespective of what you look like and where you come from. I want to be an inspiration to the next generation."

Ameobi’s continued work with the Premier League advisory group contributed to the No Room for Racism action plan, and the initiative is being marked by two match rounds this month; this weekend is the second of those match rounds dedicated to the campaign.