First Team Physiotherapist

Job Location: Academy Training Ground, BR3 1NZ
Contract Type: Full-time
Deadline: 24th September 2026

Who we are:

We are Crystal Palace Football Club, a Premier League Football Club with more than 160 years of proud history. Spread across three different sites - brand new main offices at Selhurst Park Stadium, our London office, and our Training Ground/Academy, we offer the best atmosphere and culture for our fans and our employees.

We strive for excellence in the workplace with a philosophy of high standards, professionalism, and a strong work ethic from our employees. We are constantly trying to grow, diversify and build with not only our team on the pitch, but also our team in the offices and on the ground.

About this role:

Crystal Palace FC is seeking an experienced First Team Physiotherapist to provide exceptional physiotherapy services to our Men’s First-Team players through:

• Progressing individual return-to-play pathways, ensuring optimal player recovery and reducing risk of re-injury (or secondary injury) amongst injured players
• Maintaining high player availability through the accurate assessment, treatment, and individual programming of non-injured players

Responsibilities:

• Plan and deliver individualised, evidence-informed rehabilitation programmes aligned with the club's rehabilitation philosophy, team periodisation and the evolving demands of Premier League football.
• Design and implement individualised short, medium, and long-term rehabilitation programmes tailored to the player’s stage of recovery and position-specific demands, ensuring integration of the broader interdisciplinary team to enhance player experience and drive performance outcomes.
• Lead and/or contribute to the development of dynamic individual availability/performance plans for allocated players, integrating medical, physical performance, psychological and lifestyle factors.
• Support holistic player health by reinforcing high-performance behaviours relating to recovery, sleep, nutrition and lifestyle, and appropriately integrating these considerations into individual player plans.
• Conduct objective testing and data-informed assessments to monitor player progress across key health and performance variables.
• Contribute to departmental research, audit and innovation, critically appraising emerging evidence and translating relevant findings into clinical practice.
• Share knowledge across the Men’s First Team, Academy and Women's medical departments and contribute to the development of consistent club-wide clinical and rehabilitation standards.
• Communicate effectively with the Head of Medical to ensure they are kept up to date on all medical matters relating to Men’s First Team players.
• Design and deliver daily tailored rehabilitation sessions, both one-to-one and small-group, in the gym and on the pitch for injured players.
• Liaise closely with all Sport Science and Medical team members to ensure the delivery of a service which inspires player performance through individualised care and positive connection.
• Develop strong, trusting relationships with players through excellent communication, shared decision-making and clear explanation of diagnosis, risk, rehabilitation progression and availability.
• Lead and support continual enhancement of injury prevention strategies and rehabilitation protocols, ensuring alignment with evidence-informed best practice in elite sport.
• Produce phase-specific rehabilitation plans (daily, weekly, medium/long term) and share with key stakeholders.
• Review and provide your clinical opinion on the management of all Men’s First Team injuries as required by the Head of Medical.
• Lead on the rehabilitation of injured players as required by the Head of Medical.
• Accompany players to medical appointments as required.
• Carry out departmental administration tasks as required.
• Produce daily and weekly rehabilitation plans for sports science and medicine staff.
• Participate in pre-signing medical assessments where required, contributing physiotherapy and musculoskeletal expertise to the assessment and communication of future availability risk.
• Develop the rehabilitation hub of the Crystal Palace Football Club athlete data management system.
• Maintain the highest standards of clinical governance within a sporting environment, including (but not limited to) the maintenance of accurate and up-to-date clinical notes in keeping with HCPC regulations, participating in After-Action Reviews for all significant events, and updating medical processes in line with evidence-based practice.
• Contribute to a culture of continuous learning and improvement, including rehabilitation case reviews, after-action reviews, audit, CPD and feedback processes.
• Demonstrate the professional behaviours expected within a high-trust, high-performance environment, including accountability, collaboration, discretion, adaptability and a commitment to continuous personal development.
• Take defined ownership of an agreed departmental performance area, such as muscle injury surveillance, rehabilitation frameworks, player availability, clinical audit or another strategic priority.
• Attend all fixtures as required (according to the staff rota and department needs).
• Other duties and responsibilities as required by line manager.
• Upholding and promoting the Club’s policies and procedures, including Health and Safety, Safeguarding and Equal Opportunities policies and procedures.