Clive Brewer

Clive Brewer is a highly experienced high-performance leader and strength and conditioning specialist, recognised for delivering world-class athlete development systems across elite sport. With more than two decades of experience applying evidence-informed practice, he has built integrated performance programmes that connect people, process, and technology to maximise player availability, reduce injury risk, and improve performance outcomes in demanding professional environments.

He is currently Director of Olympic Strength & Conditioning at the University of Notre Dame (January 2025–present), based in South Bend, Indiana, leading physical preparation and performance support within a high-performance university sport setting. Alongside this role, he is also a Faculty member with the International Soccer Science & Performance Federation (ISSPF) (November 2021–present), contributing expert education content for coaches and practitioners seeking practical, high-level applied performance insights.

Previously, Brewer served as Director of High Performance at Columbus Crew SC (November 2019–September 2020), where he was responsible for the strategy, management, and delivery of an integrated high-performance programme spanning sport science, sports medicine, performance analysis, strength and conditioning, and nutrition. In this role he aligned staffing responsibilities to leverage expertise and accelerate staff development, implemented modern player assessment processes, and drove a collaborative analytics approach to build individual player profiles that guided tailored programming. He also led daily monitoring systems incorporating sleep and HRV technology, neuromuscular and musculoskeletal assessment, and subjective wellness scoring, while remaining accountable for workload management and the communication of daily and periodic reporting to coaching staff and front office stakeholders. His work included establishing objectively tracked return-to-training processes, designing recovery monitoring workflows, reviewing data reporting systems, directing a pre-season process that achieved 96% player availability, and leading the club’s COVID-19 operational strategy from lockdown through to competition, alongside budget responsibility.

Before football, Brewer held a senior leadership position in Major League Baseball as Assistant Director of High Performance with the Toronto Blue Jays (February 2016–November 2019). There, he helped develop a collaborative and integrated player development support system across a large staff group and multiple affiliate teams, building a player-centred high-performance culture through evidence-informed practice. His work included process and programme development, athlete profiling, individual player planning, integrated performance information review for the draft, the development of an athlete management system, and contributing to the planning of a new training complex. This period also included ongoing support work connected to the Wimbledon Tennis Championships.

Brewer has a long track record in UK performance sport and coach education, including almost 16 years as an Assessor and Lead Tutor with the UK Strength & Conditioning Association (2004–November 2019). He also worked internationally with CPD Sports Ltd (October 2014–January 2016), supporting organisations across multiple sports and performance contexts to improve technologies, systems, cultures, and training programmes. Earlier in his career he was Head of Strength & Conditioning at Widnes Vikings Rugby League (October 2011–October 2014), where he led facility development and interdisciplinary performance systems, contributing to improved availability, reduced injury incidence, and improved in-game physical outputs. He also served as Head of Human Performance at the Rugby Football League (August 2009–October 2011) and as National Programme Manager for Athlete Development at sportscotland (September 2003–August 2009).

Academically, Brewer completed an MSc in Applied Sports Science at Loughborough University (1995–1996) and has links across leading performance education environments including the Center for Excellence in Sports Science and Coach Education (East Tennessee State University) and the University of Edinburgh. His practical affiliations across his career include work connected to organisations such as the Scottish FA, Columbus Crew, Manchester United, and Liverpool FC. He speaks English and French, and within ISSPF his content focus centres on fitness training, with specialist strengths across strength and conditioning, injury reduction, fitness development, and training methodology in elite sport.