The 100 greatest football managers in history: it’s time to celebrate the finest tacticians, innovators, and motivators ever to shape the game. Get ready for a journey through football’s managerial legends.
It feels almost impossible, doesn’t it? How can anyone definitively rank the 100 best football managers of all time? Comparing achievements across generations, continents, and clubs seems an unenviable task.
But that won’t stop us from trying. These managers have reinvented football in their own eras – adjusting, innovating, and winning the game’s most glittering prizes. It’s time we pay tribute to these visionaries of the touchline.
Here’s FFT’s definitive list of the greatest football managers ever.
Roy Hodgson’s managerial career reads like the storyline of an ambitious Football Manager save: eight different countries, 21 clubs or national teams, and challenges ranging from Sweden’s second division to European finals.
His five straight titles with Malmö FF set the tone for a career that left a lasting impact across Scandinavian football. Although his time at Liverpool was less successful, he worked wonders with Switzerland and Copenhagen, and even steadied the ship at Inter Milan.
Yet Hodgson’s finest achievement came with Fulham, where he pulled off a miraculous escape from relegation before guiding the team to the Europa League final, after an incredible seventh-place Premier League finish.
As a footballer, Fatih Terim was a clever and resilient defender – and his managerial sides have often mirrored those traits.
Known as ‘The Emperor’, Terim has managed Turkey three times, famously leading them to the Euro 2008 semi-finals, and guided Galatasaray on four separate tenures. His teams were renowned for their fierce, high-intensity style, most notably the Galatasaray side that won four consecutive league titles from 1997 to 2000 and triumphed in the UEFA Cup final against Arsenal.
“He’s extraordinary,” said former player Gheorghe Hagi. “He could coach any side in the world.”
When Václav Jezek took charge of Sparta Prague in 1964, he introduced a stylish and fluid brand of football that soon conquered Czechoslovakia and caught global attention when he later managed the national team.
He moulded the Czech side into a disciplined yet expressive unit and oversaw one of the greatest shocks in football history, when Czechoslovakia defeated reigning world champions West Germany in the 1976 European Championship final.
Antonin Panenka’s famous chipped penalty sealed the win, but the foundation of strength and grace that defined that team was all Jezek’s creation.
As a teenager at Bologna, Roberto Mancini demanded to take every set piece—corners, free kicks, and penalties. If his coaches refused, he would leave the pitch. That same uncompromising spirit has defined his managerial career.
Since cutting short a loan spell at Leicester City in 2001 to manage Fiorentina, Mancini has collected six domestic cups and four league titles, including Manchester City’s first Premier League title in 44 years.
He later found success with the Italian national team, guiding the Azzurri to European Championship glory in 2021.
“When I visit Liverpool, I’m always surprised by how warmly people treat me,” Gérard Houllier remarked in 2019.
It’s no mystery why. The Frenchman delivered a memorable cup treble in 2001, restoring silverware to Anfield after six barren years. Although he never secured a league title with Liverpool, his impact was profound.
Before his Premier League stint, Houllier led Paris Saint-Germain to their first-ever league title in 1986. Despite a disappointing spell as France’s manager in 1992/93, he later won two Ligue 1 titles with Lyon, cementing his legacy as one of France’s most successful coaches.
Hassan Shehata entered the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations under immense scrutiny as Egypt’s head coach. When he substituted star striker Mido in the semi-final against Senegal with 12 minutes remaining, critics were ready to pounce—until replacement Amr Zaki scored the winning goal within two minutes.
Egypt went on to lift the trophy and repeated that success in 2008 and 2010, becoming the first nation to win three consecutive AFCON titles. Under Shehata, Egypt climbed to ninth in the FIFA world rankings—their highest-ever position.
There’s little shame in losing a World Cup final, especially to Brazil’s legendary 1970 team. Still, many Italians felt Ferruccio Valcareggi’s conservative tactics cost them the match in Mexico City, and he needed a police escort upon returning to Rome.
Yet Valcareggi had rejuvenated Italy after their humiliating group-stage exit at the 1966 World Cup—when they were beaten by North Korea—and led them to victory at the 1968 European Championship. His ability to rebuild and re-energise the Azzurri remains one of his defining achievements.
Antonio Conte is a fascinating contradiction. Calm and composed in interviews, yet a fiery and relentless presence on the sidelines. His football philosophy is intense but calculated.
Conte’s league triumphs in both Italy and England were built on wing-backs and high-tempo attacking football, a style that earned him a reputation as a force of nature. But behind the energy lies a razor-sharp tactical mind.
“He’s the best coach I ever worked with,” said Andrea Pirlo. “He pushes you to give your best every single day – and when he loses, he turns into a demon.”
Juan López Fontana was the first coach to make Brazil question their footballing identity.
In 1950, his disciplined Uruguay side stunned the world by defeating the free-scoring Brazilian team in the World Cup final, in what became known as the ‘Maracanazo’. Brazil had been hailed as champions before kick-off, but Fontana’s tactical brilliance exposed their defensive frailties and silenced the Maracanã.
Fontana later guided Uruguay to the 1954 World Cup semi-finals and won two league titles with Peñarol, solidifying his place among South America’s great tacticians.
With a trademark cigarette always hanging from his lips, Belgian coach Raymond Goethals was a meticulous tactician with the mind of a detective. At Marseille, he reached the 1991 European Cup final, losing on penalties, before leading the club to victory two years later against AC Milan.
Although Marseille was later engulfed in a match-fixing scandal—Goethals was not implicated—the Belgian’s innovative tactics should never be overlooked. A pioneer of zonal marking and the offside trap, he was truly ahead of his time.
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