Sarina Wiegman will take over from Phil Neville as the new England Women head coach, starting her role in September 2021.
The 50-year-old Dutchwoman was the Football Association’s preferred choice out of the 142 candidates who applied and this week the two parties worked out the last details of the contract and the start date.
Wiegman was keen to lead the Oranje at the Tokyo Olympics and has been granted that wish. The FA said on Friday that it would now “renew its dialogue with the home nations in respect of the postponed Tokyo Olympics as well as the 2024 Games, and a decision on the head coach for the Team GB next year will be announced in due course”.
The FA announced in April that Neville would not extend his contract when it expires next summer and will be delighted to have got its No 1 choice on a long-term deal. Wiegman led the Netherlands to victory at the 2017 European Championship on home soil and took them to the final of the World Cup two years later.
Wiegman said: “I am delighted and honoured to join England Women next year. England is the cradle of football and the major developments in women’s football globally over recent years have been led by the FA. I’m very much looking forward to contributing my experience and expertise to this ambitious team.
“The ride with the ‘Oranje Lionesses’ have been amazing so far, but we haven’t reached our final decision yet. There are two more goals: qualifying for Euro 2022 and challenging at the Olympics next summer. That would be a fitting completion for me of everything we’ve strived to achieve in women’s football in my home country.”
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Wiegman won 104 caps for the Netherlands during her playing career. She managed ADO Den Haag Women before becoming Netherlands Women assistant coach in 2014, taking over as head coach in 2017.
The FA director of women’s football, Sue Campbell, said: “It speaks volumes for the progress of England Women over recent years and the bold ambitions we have for the future that we had so many world-class candidates apply for the role.
“Sarina was our number one choice. She’s the perfect cultural fit for us, which is crucially important in building a winning team. Her technical expertise, leadership skills and winning mentality is hugely impressive. I am confident that together with our incredible support staff and ambitious, talented playing squad she can help us achieve the international success we are striving for.
“Sarina will also be a great ambassador for the FA and the women’s game in England, sharing our desire to inspire the next generation of English players, coaches, administrators and supporters.”
The England players are likely to be delighted with the appointment. Having reached the Euro 2017 semi-finals, where they lost 3-0 to Wiegman’s Netherlands, under Mark Sampson, Neville took them to the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup but their form deteriorated sharply after the tournament in France.
Taking in the semi-final defeat against USA at the World Cup, Neville has lost seven of his last 11 games. In March he admitted that England’s SheBelieves Cup performances, in which they lost to the US and Spain and earned a scrappy 1-0 win against Japan were “unacceptable”.
After the exit from the World Cup the England full-back Lucy Bronze backed Neville but admitted he was not perhaps the best coach in the world when it comes to tactics. “Phil’s said himself he’s not the best coach with the best tactics,” Bronze said at the time. “But he’s won over the doubters from the moment he stepped in. He’s wanted to create relationships with the players, fans and staff and he’s really done that. That’s helped us drive on at this tournament and become a better team.”
The FA chief executive, Mark Bullingham, said of Wiegman’s appointment: “We’re thrilled to have secured Sarina to lead the Lionesses until 2025. She was the outstanding candidate from a very strong field. Having won a home Euros in 2017 and leading the Netherlands to the final of the Women’s World Cup last year, she’s a proven winner and we’re confident she can take England to the next level, giving us the best possible opportunity of achieving our ambition to win a major tournament.”
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