Thomas Tuchel has been appointed the new manager of the England national football team, signing an 18-month contract.
According to a report by the Daily Mail on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, the former Chelsea boss will officially begin his £6 million-a-year role on January 1, 2025, succeeding Gareth Southgate, who stepped down following England’s Euro 2024 final loss to Spain in July.
The Football Association (FA) announced the appointment on Wednesday, confirming that Mr Tuchel signed the contract last Tuesday.
He will be joined by assistant coach Anthony Barry, who has previously worked with him at both Chelsea and Bayern Munich.
Mr Tuchel, who becomes England’s third foreign manager after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello, brings significant experience to the role, having won the UEFA Champions League with Chelsea in 2021.
His appointment follows the FA’s search for a high-profile candidate to guide the team after Southgate’s resignation two days post-Euro 2024, marking the end of his seven-year tenure.
The German manager will be tasked with building on Southgate’s achievements, including a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a Euros final in 2021 while aiming to deliver England’s first major tournament victory since 1966.
Mr Tuchel’s immediate focus will be on preparing the team for the upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifiers and the challenge of restoring the nation’s fortunes on the international stage.
Upon his appointment, Mr Tuchel said: “I am very proud to have been given the honour of leading the England team. I have long felt a personal connection to the game in this country, and it has given me some incredible moments already.
“To have the chance to represent England is a huge privilege, and the opportunity to work with this special and talented group of players is very exciting.
“Working closely with Anthony as my assistant coach, we will do everything we can to make England successful and the supporters proud. I want to thank the FA, in particular Mark and John, for their trust and I am looking forward to starting our journey together,” he said.
FA CEO Mark Bullingham added: “We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him. Our recruitment process has been very thorough.
“Before the Euros, we had a contingency plan and outlined exactly the qualities we would be looking for in a coach. Since Gareth resigned, we have worked through the candidate pool, meeting a number of coaches and evaluating them against that criteria.
“Thomas was very impressive and stood out with his vast expertise and his drive. Anthony is a top English talent and has international experience with the Republic of Ireland, Belgium, and Portugal.
“Fundamentally we wanted to hire a coaching team to give us the best possible chance of winning a major tournament, and we believe they will do just that. Thomas and the team have a single-minded focus on giving us the best possible chance to win the World Cup in 2026,” Mr Bullingham said.
