The 2026 World Cup has bucked the trend of international football’s struggles to compete with the riches of the club game when it comes to securing some of the world’s best coaches.
AFP Sports looks at five of the big names who have been lured by the quest for World Cup glory:
Thomas Tuchel (England)
The former Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain boss has become the English Football Association’s latest gun for hire in a bid to end a wait to win a major tournament that stretches back to 1966.
Englishman Gareth Southgate came closer than any of his predecessors to ending that drought when in charge of the Three Lions, reaching two finals of the Euros, plus a World Cup quarter and semi-final.
But Southgate’s in-game management and tactical acumen was often questioned in the biggest games.
A Champions League winner during his time at Chelsea, Tuchel boasts a more impressive CV at club level.
But questions remain over how his methods will transfer to the very different demands of international tournament football, particularly in the oppressive conditions that a squad run down by the rigours of the exhausting schedule of English football is expected to face.
Carlo Ancelotti (Brazil)
After decades of coming up short against European opposition in the latter stages of the World Cup, Brazil have turned to one of European football’s greatest ever coaches to end the 24-year wait for a sixth star upon the famous yellow jersey.
By a distance the most successful boss in Champions League history with five titles, Ancelotti is an expert in navigating knockout football and the Italian already has experience working with some of the stars at his disposal.
Vinicius Junior’s best football of his career came under Ancelotti’s orders at Real Madrid.
A squad lacking some of the magic synonymous with Brazil sides of previous World Cups will need Vinicius at his best if they are to conquer the world again.
Famous for keeping a cool head and egos in check, Ancelotti can bring calm to the Selecao’s often over-emotional quest to rule the world once more.
Mauricio Pochettino (USA)
After a rollercoaster two years in charge without much competitive football, Pochettino’s time in the States faces the acid test.
The Argentine has at times clashed with local media, while results have been underwhelming.
The US have failed to win either the Gold Cup or CONCACAF Nations League under Pochettino, losing in embarrassing fashion on home soil to Panama, Mexico and Canada.
Hope that a corner had been turned in impressive friendly wins over Uruguay and Japan was quickly quelled by comprehensive defeats to Portugal and Belgium in March.
Marcelo Bielsa (Uruguay)
A reference point for many of the top coaches of the modern game from Pep Guardiola to Pochettino, Bielsa has possibly a final chance to shine on the global stage as he leads a third different nation at a World Cup.
Landmark victories over Brazil and Argentina in qualifying fuelled the optimism that greeted the Argentine’s arrival on the other side of the Rio de la Plata.
But in a familiar pattern to Bielsa’s career in club coaching, cracks have begun to appear with a squad struggling to match his famously exacting standards.
Luis Suarez hit out at Bielsa’s methods after retiring from international football, claiming he had reduced former Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez to tears at half-time of a 2-0 win over Argentina such was the force of his criticism.
Results have also regressed, with Bielsa stating he was “ashamed” by a 5-1 friendly defeat to the USA in November.
Bielsa oversaw his native Argentina’s disappointing group stage exit at the 2002 World Cup, but guided Chile to the last 16 in South Africa 16 years ago.
Julian Nagelsmann (Germany)
Nagelsmann fell just short of delivering glory to Germany on home soil at the Euros two years ago when they were knocked out by eventual winners Spain in the quarter-finals and he is expected to have just one more shot before returning to the club game.
Still aged just 38, the former Bayern Munich boss restored pride to die Mannschaft after a disastrous run of three major tournaments without a knockout victory between 2018 and 2024, which included two consecutive group stage exits from the World Cup.
Nagelsmann may need all of his tactical nous if Germany are to move alongside Brazil as the most successful nation in World Cup history.
Complicating his task, the key trio of Florian Wirtz, Jamal Musiala and Kai Havertz have endured difficult club seasons due to form or fitness.
Credit: AFP Sports
