Thomas Tuchel is to become coach of the England national team. According to the English Football Association, the 51-year-old German will take over the "Three Lions" from January 1, 2025.
The former coach of Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, FSV Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich will thus become the first German to hold the most important coaching post in the motherland of football. Tuchel will take up the job on January 1, 2025. England will play their last two Nations League games in Greece and against Ireland in mid-November under Lee Carsley.
Tuchel, whose contract duration is not yet known, is expected to lead the Three Lions to the 2026 World Cup finals in the USA, Mexico and Canada - and in the best-case scenario even to their first major title since the 1966 World Cup triumph.
The third foreigner
Tuchel is the third foreign national coach in England after the Swede Sven-Göran Eriksson (January 2001 to July 2006), who recently died of cancer, and the Italian Fabio Capello (December 2007 to February 2012).
Tuchel's appointment was confirmed by the English Football Association on Wednesday morning. The presentation will take place at Wembley Stadium in the afternoon. Most of the English media had already reported Tuchel's signing on Tuesday. "Tuchel is an old acquaintance to English fans after coaching Chelsea for 17 months between 2021 and 2022," said the Daily Mail. Tuchel took over Chelsea in January 2021 and immediately led them to win the Champions League. Chelsea beat Manchester City 1:0 in the final.
Carsley counted out
After finishing 3rd in the Premier League the following season, however, Tuchel and Chelsea got off to a bad start with consequences. In September 2022, the club parted ways with the German coach, who then ended up at Bayern after a time-out. His contract there was terminated after last season.
The position of England national team coach became vacant after the European Championships, after the collaboration with Gareth Southgate was terminated after eight years despite the team reaching the European Championship final again. Lee Carsley took over on an interim basis, but the recent 2:1 defeat in the Nations League at Wembley was a serious blow to him.
Tuchel will be reunited with a number of Chelsea FC players and, in particular, national team captain Harry Kane, who played under him at Bayern Munich. "Thomas is a fantastic coach and a fantastic person," said Kane.
SDA
