FORMER Fulham and Brighton defender Liam Rosenior will help choose the next FA chairman.

Rosenior has been appointed to the six-person panel to find the successor to disgraced Greg Clarke.

But Wembley chief executive Mark Bullingham has revealed he believes it is unlikely that the next head of the FA will be a former player.

Paul Elliott, Les Ferdinand and even Gary Lineker have been suggested as potential candidates to become the public face of the FA.

But Bullingham said: “There are two main areas of the role. 

“One is to be an absolutely brilliant ambassador and represent us on both the international and domestic stage.

"I think players can absolutely do that. But there’s a second requirement to run the board of the FA. 

“We have a complex stakeholder board and it’s hard to see that someone who has never run a board would be able to step in and run a complex stakeholder board of a £450million organisation with 760 employees. 

“We are doing a board review and I would love to have player representation on the board.

“But if you are asking me if that has to be the chair role, my personal answer would be no.”

Bullingham confirmed the post would be advertised next month, with a shortlist compiled early in the new year and the hope that the appointment would be announced by the spring.

The recruitment panel, which includes interim chairman Peter McCormick, will be headed by Stacey Cartwright, whose boardroom roles include running Harvey Nicholls.

Bullingham said he was 'delighted' to have co-opted Derby coach Rosenior 'who represents players and coaches'.

Clarke’s enforced resignation, after comments to a Commons Select Committee which were condemned for racism, homophobia and misogyny, has led to an expectation that the FA would favour a minority candidate.

But Bullingham, who insisted Clarke’s statements 'do not reflect the modern organisation we are today, our diverse game and our diverse workforce', maintained that was not the case.

He added: “I would hope that is not the public expectation.

“We have been really clear that we absolutely want to have a diverse shortlist and then choose the best candidate from that.

"I think anybody from the disadvantaged communities would be asking for the same.

“Over the past week we've had over twenty search companies come forward with potential candidates.

“We're very excited about the level of candidates that we are going to get for this role.”

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