Former England boss Gareth Southgate explains why he turned down World Cup job | OneFootball

Gareth Southgate has revealed he opted against taking on a role as a television pundit for what is his first World Cup since parting ways with England.

Southgate left his role as England manager after suffering defeat in the Euro 2024 final, ending an eight-year spell with the setup that saw him take the Three Lions to heights not reached in decades.

He was succeeded by Thomas Tuchel in the hot seat, who leads the side into their Group L opener against Croatia on Wednesday.

Instead of jumping back into the spotlight in a punditry capacity, Southgate vowed to stay “out of the way” and for that reason turned down opportunities to work in TV for the tournament.

“This is obviously a very different tournament for me this one, I have been at the last seven World Cups as a player, as a broadcaster, as a scout and then as a manager,” Southgate said on Instagram, where he sent a good-luck message to the England squad.

Gareth Southgate made the decision to keep “out of the way” at the World Cup (BBC/Cardiff Productions)

“This time I took a conscious decision not to do the TV. I didn’t think it would be helpful for me to be talking about the team.

“I don’t want anything to be misconstrued or thrown at them in press conferences. So, best for me to keep out of the way.”

Southgate took England to back-to-back European Championship finals in 2021 and 2024 while also producing runs to the semi-finals and quarter-finals at his two World Cups at the helm.

The former England international was unable to end what is now the country’s 60-year wait for major silverware but has backed Tuchel to deliver and insists “they are ready to win”.

“I want to take a moment to say good luck to all the boys,” he added. “All the knockout nights they’ve had means they are going to be full of confidence going into the tournament.”

“They have overcome so many hurdles to winning, penalty shootouts, semi-finals, we got so close and they are ready to win. I am looking forward to watching. I hope everybody has a great one and I will be staying out of the way.”