50 Fun Facts About Football Managers

As of 2026, which manager is the only one to have won all three current UEFA club competitions?

José Mourinho completed the set with Roma's 2022 Conference League, having won the Champions League with Porto and Inter and the Europa League with Manchester United. The 'special one' line came at his 2004 Chelsea unveiling.

Which manager introduced himself as 'The Normal One' at his first Liverpool press conference in 2015?

Jürgen Klopp's line was a parody of a rival's 'Special One' boast from 2004. He had become Mainz 05's manager in 2001 the moment he retired as one of its players.

Which England manager lasted one match and 67 days in 2016 before a newspaper sting ended his reign?

Sam Allardyce left by mutual consent after undercover Daily Telegraph reporters posing as businessmen recorded him offering to help them get around FA third-party ownership rules.

Which manager was sacked by Leicester City in February 2017, nine months after winning the Premier League?

Claudio Ranieri was dismissed with Leicester one point above the relegation zone and 13 matches left. British media had earlier dubbed him 'The Tinkerman' for over-rotating his Chelsea squad.

Which manager was sacked by Tottenham Hotspur in June 2025, weeks after ending the club's 17-year trophy wait?

Ange Postecoglou's Spurs beat Manchester United 1–0 in the Europa League final, then dismissed him on 6 June, two years to the day after his appointment. He had been the first Australian to manage in the Premier League.

Which manager lasted just 44 days at Leeds United in 1974 after alienating the club's star players?

Brian Clough was sacked by the Leeds directors on 12 September 1974, two years after taking Derby County to the league title. He won two European Cups with Nottingham Forest within six years.

As of 2026, which Italian is the only manager to have won league titles in all five of Europe's top leagues?

Carlo Ancelotti's titles came with Milan (2004), Chelsea (2010), Paris Saint-Germain (2013), Bayern Munich (2017) and Real Madrid (2022). In 2025 he took his first national-team job, with Brazil.

As of 2026, who is the only manager to have won the World Cup, European Championship, Champions League and Intercontinental Cup?

Vicente del Bosque won two Champions Leagues with Real Madrid, who let him go in 2003 straight after he delivered the league title; he then led Spain to the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012.

Which Manchester United manager had played for two of the club's greatest rivals, Manchester City and Liverpool?

Matt Busby twice received the last rites after the 1958 Munich air disaster, left hospital after nine weeks, and in 1968 became the first manager of an English team to win the European Cup.

Which manager led Scotland at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, months before taking over at Manchester United?

Alex Ferguson agreed to take charge of Scotland after Jock Stein's death, first for the play-off against Australia and then at the finals, while still running Aberdeen.

Which England manager's 1966 World Cup winners were dubbed the 'Wingless Wonders' for their narrow formation?

Alf Ramsey was knighted in 1967 for the win, yet lost the job acrimoniously after England failed to qualify for the 1974 World Cup.

Which coach won the Women's Euros with the Netherlands in 2017 and then with England in 2022 and 2025?

Sarina Wiegman is the first coach to win the tournament with two different countries, and her 2025 title came on penalties against Spain, who had beaten her England side in the 2023 World Cup final.

Which England-born coach won consecutive Women's World Cups with the United States in 2015 and 2019?

Jill Ellis, born in Folkestone, never played organised football in England, where there were no girls' teams in the 1970s, and took the game up only after her family moved to the United States.

Which coach won the 2002 World Cup with Brazil but was sacked by Chelsea after seven months in 2009?

Luiz Felipe Scolari's Brazil beat Germany 2–0 in the 2002 final with two Ronaldo goals; Chelsea sacked him on 9 February 2009 after a 2–0 defeat at Liverpool and a goalless home draw with Hull City.

Which coach managed Germany for 15 years from 2006, winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil?

Joachim Löw had been brought in as Jürgen Klinsmann's assistant after Euro 2004; his 2014 final was settled in the second half of extra time by substitute Mario Götze's goal against Argentina.

Which Italian resigned as England manager in February 2012 after the FA stripped John Terry of the captaincy?

Fabio Capello had himself taken the armband from Terry in 2010 over a tabloid scandal, but when the FA removed it again in 2012 he fell out with his employers and quit four months before the Euros.

Which Dutch coach took co-hosts South Korea to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals and was made an honorary citizen?

Guus Hiddink was the first person ever granted honorary South Korean citizenship, and the grateful hosts added a villa on Jeju island and free flights for life.

Which German became England's third foreign head coach when his appointment took effect on 1 January 2025?

Thomas Tuchel followed two earlier foreign coaches into the job; he had won the 2021 Champions League with Chelsea, beating Manchester City 1–0 in the final within months of arriving.

Which manager left Chelsea after seven WSL titles to win Olympic gold with the United States in 2024?

Emma Hayes's seven titles included five in a row from 2020 to 2024; she was named USA head coach in November 2023 but finished the WSL season first.

Which Liverpool manager was the first to win three European Cups, in 1977, 1978 and 1981?

Bob Paisley, once the club's physiotherapist, took the job reluctantly in 1974 and went on to win twenty honours in nine seasons.

Which Liverpool manager had the 'THIS IS ANFIELD' plaque fixed to the wall above the players' tunnel?

Bill Shankly said the sign was there 'to remind our lads who they're playing for, and to remind the opposition who they're playing against'.

Which manager won the French title in his first season at Monaco, 1987–88?

Arsène Wenger reached Arsenal in 1996 by way of Japan's Nagoya Grampus Eight, so little known in England that supporters asked 'Arsène who?', and he stayed for 22 years.

Which manager went straight from a season with Barcelona's fourth-tier B side to the senior job in 2008?

Pep Guardiola's B team won its Tercera División group, and his first senior season ended with Spain's first treble of league, cup and Champions League.

Which Ajax and Netherlands coach, a Euro 88 winner, was named FIFA's Coach of the Century in 1999?

Rinus Michels managed Ajax to the first of three consecutive European Cups in 1971 and is credited as the architect of the Dutch 'Total Football' style.

Which interim appointee of November 2019 led Bayern Munich to the Champions League nine months later?

Hansi Flick stepped up when Niko Kovač left by mutual consent on 3 November 2019, completed the treble and added a sextuple with the Club World Cup in February 2021; he took the Barcelona job in May 2024.

Which Argentine admitted sending a spy to watch Derby County train in 2019, costing Leeds United a £200,000 fine?

Marcelo Bielsa, nicknamed 'El Loco', paid the £200,000 EFL fine out of his own pocket.

Which manager's fifth Europa League title came with Aston Villa's 3–0 win over Freiburg in the May 2026 final?

Unai Emery won three in a row with Sevilla and a fourth with Villarreal, and the one Europa League final he lost also came with an English club, Arsenal, beaten 4–1 by Chelsea in 2019.

Which coach won the continental treble with Barcelona in 2015 and again with Paris Saint-Germain in 2025?

Luis Enrique became only the second manager to win the treble twice, and the Paris one came in the club's first season after Kylian Mbappé left for Real Madrid.

As of 2026, which Italian is the only coach to have won both the UEFA and AFC Champions Leagues?

Marcello Lippi won the 1996 Champions League with Juventus and the 2013 AFC edition with Guangzhou Evergrande, with Italy's 2006 World Cup in between.

Which AC Milan coach, a former shoe salesman who never played professionally, won the European Cup in 1989 and 1990?

Arrigo Sacchi answered doubts about his playing record with 'I never realised that in order to become a jockey you have to have been a horse first'.

Which Chelsea and Juventus manager spent years as a banker in Tuscany while coaching amateur sides?

Maurizio Sarri worked for Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and never played professionally; his first major trophy was Chelsea's 2019 Europa League.

Whose 'Grande Inter' won back-to-back European Cups in 1964 and 1965 playing catenaccio?

Helenio Herrera's eight-year spell at Inter made him the world's highest-paid manager when Roma hired him in 1968.

Which Chelsea player-manager became the first from outside the British Isles to win a major English trophy, in 1997?

Ruud Gullit's FA Cup was Chelsea's first major trophy in 26 years, yet he was sacked the following season with the team second in the league.

Which manager, later the FA's technical director, won the final old First Division title with Leeds United in 1992?

Howard Wilkinson remains, as of 2026, the last English manager to win England's top division, since no Englishman has won the Premier League that replaced it.

Which England manager quit in 1977 to coach the United Arab Emirates, earning a ten-year ban from the FA?

Don Revie broke the news in a Daily Mail exclusive on 12 July 1977; a court later overturned the FA's suspension, ruling the governing body had overreached its powers.

Which manager won the 1981 UEFA Cup with Ipswich Town?

Bobby Robson's Ipswich beat AZ 67 Alkmaar 5–4 on aggregate; he later took England to the 1990 World Cup semi-final, lost on penalties to West Germany.

Which coach won Euro 2008 with Spain, their first international honour since 1964, by adopting tiki-taka?

Luis Aragonés chose short passing to offset his players' physical weakness; Spain beat Germany 1–0 in the final with a Fernando Torres goal.

Which qualified physician coached Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title and the 1990 final?

Carlos Bilardo graduated as a physician alongside teammate Raúl Madero before retiring as a player; Diego Maradona captained his 1986 winners.

Which Tottenham manager won the 1960–61 League and FA Cup double, the first of the twentieth century?

Bill Nicholson's first match in charge, in October 1958, ended Tottenham 10, Everton 4.

Which future Arsenal manager was banned from football for life in 1919 over Leeds City's illegal payments scandal?

Herbert Chapman's ban was overturned, and he died in office in the early hours of 6 January 1934 with Arsenal the reigning champions.

Who was England's first manager, in charge from 1946 to 1962 while a selection committee picked his players?

Walter Winterbottom doubled as the FA's Director of Coaching throughout, and he remains England's youngest and longest-serving manager.

Whose 2007 return as Torquay United head coach ended ten minutes after it was announced, when the club was sold?

Leroy Rosenior's reappointment on 17 May 2007 was undone when a local consortium bought the club, installed Colin Lee as chief executive and named Paul Buckle manager.

Which coach ran Auxerre for more than 40 years from 1961, taking a fourth-tier club to the 1996 French title?

Guy Roux started as Auxerre's player-manager in the Division d'Honneur in 1961, took the club into Division 1 in 1980 and clinched the 1995–96 title.

Which Austrian was the first coach to win the European Cup with two different clubs, Feyenoord and Hamburg?

Ernst Happel won with Feyenoord in 1970 and Hamburg in 1983; Vienna's Praterstadion, Austria's biggest ground, was renamed the Ernst-Happel-Stadion after him.

Which coach's Hungary side beat an England team including Stanley Matthews 6–3 at Wembley in 1953?

Gusztáv Sebes built the side while serving as Hungary's deputy sports minister, and his Olympic champions beat England again the next year, 7–1 in Budapest.

Which Dynamo Kyiv coach modelled his players' training loads mathematically with scientist Anatoliy Zelentsov?

Valeriy Lobanovskyi's system of calculated physical loads brought Dynamo Kyiv the Cup Winners' Cup in 1975 and again in 1986.

Who coached hosts Uruguay to the first World Cup in 1930, and at 31 remains the youngest winning coach?

Alberto Suppici's Uruguay went in at half-time of the final in Montevideo 2–1 down to Argentina, then scored three times without reply to win 4–2.

Which coach won Euro 2000 with France and then the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations with Tunisia?

Roger Lemerre was sacked by France after the holders went out of the 2002 World Cup in the first round without scoring, then won the African title with hosts Tunisia two years later.

Which coach became the first manager born outside Britain or Ireland to run an English top-flight club, in 1990?

Jozef Vengloš was appointed by Aston Villa, fresh from taking Czechoslovakia to the 1990 World Cup quarter-finals.

Which Brazilian coached five different nations at a record six World Cups, winning with Brazil in 1994?

Carlos Alberto Parreira's six tournaments ran from Kuwait in 1982 to hosts South Africa in 2010, and in 1998 Saudi Arabia fired him just two matches into the finals.