Martin Glenn believes he is leaving the Football Association in rude health after announcing his resignation as chief executive.
Glenn, who joined the governing body in May 2015, will depart at the end of the 2018/19 season.
The 58-year-old was credited in an FA statement with helping to create a culture around the England teams which “led to an unprecedented period of success”.
Our Chief Executive Officer will depart at the end of this season: https://t.co/l3mNFzjASq — The FA (@FA) December 13, 2018
He also presided over a series of challenging situations, including the sacking of England women’s manager Mark Sampson, the appointment and rapid departure of men’s boss Sam Allardyce, and the failed sale of Wembley Stadium.
“When I accepted the role of CEO at The FA, I was tasked with improving the effectiveness of the organisation and making it financially secure,” said Glenn in a statement.
“I also joined with the strong belief that the England team’s performance in tournaments could and should improve, and that the experience of the millions of people who play football could be a better one.
“I will leave feeling proud of the success of the performance of all the England teams.
“I am confident that we have established in St George’s Park, a world-class centre which will ensure that the teams will continue to build on their current successes.
“I hope that the FA will be able to build on this by accelerating the breakthrough of English qualified players into the first teams.
“Running the FA has been a huge honour and a privilege.”
Glenn arrived at the FA after leaving his role as CEO of food manufacturer United Biscuits.
During his tenure, England’s men’s and women’s teams reached World Cup semi-finals, while the men’s Under-17 and Under-20 sides each won World Cups in their respective age groups.
He also oversaw a revamp of the English football fixture schedule, which will see a winter break introduced from next season.
However, Glenn was criticised for his role in the investigation into the conduct of women’s manager Sampson.
Sampson was sacked in September last year for “inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour” with female players in his previous role at Bristol Academy.
Glenn later received a vote of confidence from the FA board for his handling of the situation.
There was controversy in March when Glenn was forced to apologise after referencing the Star of David alongside symbols such as the Nazi swastika, while he supported the recently-collapsed deal to sell Wembley to businessman Shahid Khan.
It was also under his leadership that ex-England boss Allardyce left his post by mutual agreement after one match and 67 days following the fallout from a newspaper investigation in September 2016.
Despite the difficult periods, FA chairman Greg Clarke said Glenn had transformed the organisation.
“On behalf of the board of the FA, I would like to thank Martin for building and leading a senior management team that has transformed our organisation,” Clarke.
“His integrity, commitment, energy and passion for football has underpinned the improvements on and off the pitch.”
The FA added in a statement: “We are extremely grateful to Martin for all he has achieved and he leaves very strong foundations for his successor.”
Glenn has also been hailed for increasing the FA’s revenue streams by around 40 per cent, as well as presiding over a significant increase in both profile and participation levels in the women’s game.
Premier League executive chairman Richard Scudamore, who will imminently depart his role, praised Glenn’s work.
“Martin has been excellent to work with over the last four years and deserves huge credit for the continued development of St George’s Park, the successes of men’s, women’s and junior national teams and for prioritising community football,” said Scudamore.
“During his tenure the working relationship between the Premier League and the FA has been better than ever – as demonstrated by changes made to the football calendar which will see the introduction of a mid-season player break.”
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