Tag: Sarina Wiegman

Goodbye USWNT? Wiegman will coach Team GB at Olympics if they qualify

Should Team GB qualify, Wiegman will be able to choose players from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

The Football Association (FA) has confirmed that England women’s national team head coach Sarina Wiegman will coach Team GB if it qualifies for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Wiegman has enjoyed huge success with England and previously with the Netherlands, reaching the final of two straight European Championships (2017 and 2022) and World Cups (2019 and 2023), winning the Euros on both occasions while finishing runner-up at the World Cups.

The Dutch manager’s success has seen her emerge as one of the top candidates to take over the vacant U.S. women’s national team job. Wiegman has already tried to downplay any links with the USWNT, saying last month she’s happy with England and has a contract through 2025.

U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker has said interim USWNT head coach Twila Kilgore will likely remain in her post through October, with a new coach hopefully in place by December.

“My full focus is on the Nations League campaign, but I would of course be very excited if the chance came to lead Team GB next summer,” said Wiegman.

Alongside host nation France, two Olympic spots are available for European teams, who will qualify through the inaugural UEFA Women’s Nations League that starts this week.

“The Olympics Games is such a special sporting event and, for women’s football, one of the biggest stages to play,” Wiegman added. “That is the goal, but we know it cannot happen if we don’t do our job in the Nations League. Until that is complete, it would not be right to talk any more about Team GB including speculation about players and any early preparations.”

Should Team GB qualify, Wiegman will be able to choose players from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

With only one team out of those four eligible to qualify, England has been designated as the team that will attempt to qualify for the Olympics on behalf of Team GB.

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Wiegman dedicates UEFA Coach of the Year award to Spain women’s national team

Wiegman: Spain ‘deserves to be celebrated, and deserves to be listened to’

Sarina Wiegman won the 2023 UEFA Coach of the Year award, but chose to use the big stage to acknowledge a team that defeated her.

In a speech at a UEFA gala that doubled as both an awards ceremony and the Champions League draw, Wiegman dedicated her award to the players of Spain’s World Cup champions.

England fell 1-0 to Spain in the World Cup final, but for Wiegman, the broader issues that came immediately after that game were top of mind.

After thanking her coaching colleagues, players, and support staff with England, Wiegman turned the attention towards Spain’s players. The squad has been on strike since Spanish federation president Luis Rubiales, who among other things kissed attacker Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the World Cup’s medal ceremony, refused to step down. Hermoso has maintained that the kiss was not consensual.

“We all know the issues around the Spanish team, and it really hurts me as a coach as a mother of two daughters as a wife and as a human being,” said Wiegman at Thursday’s event. “The game has grown so much, but there’s also still a long way to go [in] women’s football and in society.

“I would like to dedicate this award to the Spanish team, the team that played in the World Cup, such great football that everyone enjoyed. This team deserves to be celebrated, and deserves to be listened to,” added Wiegman before starting a round of applause.

Spain midfielder and World Cup Golden Ball winner Aitana Bonmatí, who received the UEFA Women’s Player of the Year award at the same event, called out “abuses of power” throughout the women’s game and in society in general.

“These are not very good times for Spanish football,” said Bonmatí. “We come from winning the World Cup, but not much is being said about it, because there are things happening and I would not like to let these things go by unnoticed.

“I would like to comment something on what has happened. I think as a society, we must not allow abuses of power in the workplace nor displays of disrespect. To all the women who have been subject to what has happened to Jenni, we stand with you. And I hope we continue working so that this society gets better.”

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Amid USWNT rumors, England coach Wiegman has ‘no plans to leave’

Wiegman to USWNT? Not so fast

It doesn’t sound like the top name linked to the vacant U.S. women’s national team job is going to end up being the hire.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final, England head coach Sarina Wiegman downplayed any rumors linking her to the same position with the USWNT, citing her existing contract with England.

“I have a contract until 2025,” said Wiegman. “I’m really enjoying my job, and I have the impression that people still like me doing that job. I have no plans to leave.”

Wiegman’s star has been on the rise for several years now. She has been the head coach for the last two European Championship winners, leading the Netherlands to that title in 2017 before last year’s stirring victory with England.

Asked about rumors that U.S. Soccer would be calling after Vlatko Andonovski’s four-year run officially ended on Thursday, Wiegman offered a brief — but clear — response.

“I’m staying out of that,” said Wiegman. “I’ve heard [the rumors]. I’m with England, I’m really happy with England, and I have a contract until 2025.”

U.S. Soccer has not commented on a coaching search that only just got underway. In announcing Andonovski’s departure, U.S. Soccer said in a statement to media that the coming weeks would include “an in-depth analysis of the Women’s National Team program and development of a long-term strategy to ensure U.S. Soccer can continue its success on the women’s side of the game.”

That may include pursuing a new general manager, or adopting some other decision-making structure, before a coach is hired. Equalizer Soccer reported on Friday that GM Kate Markgraf will not carry on in that role beyond the summer.

In the meantime, Twila Kilgore will manage the USWNT on an interim basis. The team has scheduled two September friendlies against South Africa, as well as FIFA international windows in late October and late November/early December.

FA wants Wiegman extension

Wiegman has lost just one time in 38 matches with the Lionesses, and started her tenure off with a 30-game unbeaten run. Before that, she followed up that Euro 2017 victory with the Netherlands by taking the Dutch to the 2019 World Cup final.

On Thursday, FA CEO Mark Bullingham said that the federation was going to turn down any requests to talk to Wiegman about a new role. In fact, per Bullingham, the FA has plans to discuss extending the 53-year-old’s contract once the World Cup ends.

“We’ve always said we’d get to it after a tournament,” said Bullingham. “We’ve got a bit of time because obviously she’s contracted to 2025, and she’ll obviously want to have a decent holiday after this. But all I’ll say is we’re massive fans of her. We believe she’s happy, and we’d love to continue working with her for a long time.”

In other words, the FA knows it has the most in-demand coach in the women’s game in its employ, and would love to keep things that way for a long time yet.

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England to USWNT: Don’t even think about approaching Weigman

The English FA is looking to head off any USWNT interest before it even materializes

The head of the Football Association (FA) has said he would “100 percent” reject any approach for England women’s national team head coach Sarina Wiegman, amid expected interest from U.S. Soccer.

Wiegman has helped England to Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain, further burnishing her reputation as one of the world’s elite coaches.

The Dutch manager has won the last two European Championships (with the Netherlands in 2017 and England in 2022) and has now reached two World Cup finals in a row, having fallen to the USWNT in 2019 while coaching the Netherlands.

With Vlatko Andonovski resigning as USWNT head coach, Wiegman has been mentioned as an ideal replacement, both for her international success as well as her ties to the United States, having played under Anson Dorrance at the University of North Carolina.

But speaking to the media on Thursday, FA CEO Mark Bullingham made it clear that he would not accept any inquiries over Weigman.

“We’ve seen lots of rumors, and look, she is a special talent,” Bullingham said. “We know that. From our side, she’s obviously contracted through until 2025. We think she’s doing a great job.

“We’re obviously huge supporters of her and I think hopefully she feels the same way. So from our side, she’s someone we’d like to have with us for a very long time.”

Asked if the FA would reject any approach for Wiegman, Bullingham said, “Yup, 100 percent.”

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Bullingham even said that Wiegman could be considered to take over the England men’s national team whenever Gareth Southgate’s time in charge comes to an end.

“People always say it is the best man for the job or the best Englishman,” Bullingham said. “Why does it have to be a man?

“I think our answer is always, ‘It’s the best person for the job.’ We think Sarina is doing a great job and hope she continues doing it for a long time. I think Sarina could do anything she wants in football.

“If at some point in the future she decides she wants to move into the men’s game, that would be a really interesting discussion, but that’s for her, right?

“I don’t think we should view it as a step up. If she decides at some point in the future to go in a different direction, I think she’s perfectly capable of that.”

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Who’s next? The top candidates to take over as USWNT head coach

The USWNT job will be a hot topic in the months to come

A cruel summer has left the U.S. women’s national team boarding early flights home, and that means change is on the way.

Head coach Vlatko Andonovski spent most of the last two years under increasing pressure thanks to inconsistent performance levels and some iffy results, and the USWNT will in all likelihood be looking for a new coach in the near future.

U.S. Soccer has made no such pronouncement just yet, and Andonovski declined to delve into his future immediately following the his side’s World Cup exit to Sweden, citing a desire to not hijack a moment for his own needs. That’s a prudent choice from a coach who no matter his stumbles, has placed the team’s needs before his own. It might not stoke the news cycle, but holding off on that discussion is the upstanding thing to do.

However, Andonovski’s tenure has included a series of underwhelming performances at the Olympics that ended with bronze instead of gold, and a three-game losing streak that tied the longest such run in USWNT history. That made this summer make-or-break for Andonovski.

As a prominent philosopher once said, you’re only funky as your last cut, and the earliest World Cup exit in this team’s history means that change is a must. There are issues beyond Andonovski’s control, including a long list of injured stars, but the USWNT job is a “no excuses, just win” role. It’s a safe bet that U.S. Soccer will soon be thanking Andonovski for his services and wishing him well in his future endeavors.

In other words, the discussion is already here. U.S. Soccer is surely going to be working on a preliminary list of USWNT coaching candidates before winnowing it down to a shorter list for first interviews, and so on. Within a few months, they should be introducing a new boss.

Here are some of the coaches out there that have the kind of resume the federation will be interested in.