England manager is ‘the impossible job’ – but is it the dream role for a German?

Fourteen men have managed the England men’s team since Sir Alf Ramsey won the World Cup in 1966, and none have come close to repeating the feat. Under high expectation, intense scrutiny and crippling pressure, a series of England managers have been hounded, humiliated, abused and, in Sam Allardyce’s case, stung by a ruthless media. No wonder Graham Taylor called it “the impossible job”.

The role of England manager has developed its own lore and mythology over time, a mystical code that hasn’t been cracked for 60 years. But what makes it so difficult? Is it really unique? Is it any more pressured and intense than being manager of Spain, or Italy, or Brazil?

One element of the role that is unique is England’s specific history in the World Cup. Since 1966, layers of emotion have been added on top of one another, from the injustice of Diego Maradona’s “hand of God” goal in 1986, to the heartbreak of penalties in 1990, 1998 and 2006, via the ignimony of failing to qualify in 1994, England’s relationship with the World Cup is one of potent emotion and visceral frustration.

That relationship has played out in a vociferous media which has not been afraid to tear down players and managers along the way. Taylor was infamously depicted as a turnip on the front page of The Sun, and later Sven-Goran Eriksson was shown as a swede. Bobby Robson was implored to quit following a draw against Saudi Arabia with the headline: “In the name of Allah, Go”, while Glenn Hoddle and Allardyce both departed in scandal after a newspaper interview and an undercover sting respectively.

Yet Gareth Southgate’s unique approach – to open up himself and the players to the media – helped to soften the tension and lighten the “weight of the waistcoat”. His success on the pitch compared to his predecessors also helped to cultivate a more positive feeling around the , at least up until Euro 2024 when both fans and journalists began to turn on Southgate and he finally stepped down.