Thomas Tuchel signs new contract to stay as England manager until Euro 2028 | OneFootball

German agrees fresh deal ahead of World Cup to avoid ‘potential distraction’ amid links to Manchester United and Tottenham

Thomas Tuchel has signed a new contract to remain England head coach until 2028.

The German has agreed to stay in the job beyond the World Cup and lead England into a home Euros in two years’ time.

Euro 2028 will be co-hosted by England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland. Both semi-finals and the final will be at Wembley.

“It is an incredible opportunity and we are going to do our very best to make the country proud.

Tuchel had been linked with Manchester United and Tottenham

The FA via Getty Images

“I have had so much support from Mark, all my colleagues at The FA and from fans wherever I go that I did not hesitate when asked to continue in this dream job. Euro 2028 will be a very special tournament and as a coach there is nothing more you want than to compete with the very best on the biggest possible stage.”

Tuchel was appointed in October 2024 as the permanent successor to Sir Gareth Southgate and officially assumed the role on January 1, 2025.

His first year in charge saw England qualify for the World Cup with a flawless record, winning every qualifier without conceding a goal. The only blip came in a friendly last June when they were beaten 3-1 in Nottingham by Senegal.

The FA’s decision to offer Tuchel a new contract is acknowledgement of his fine start to the job and commitment to keeping him in post longer-term.

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham says there is “simply no better candidate available in world football”.

There was criticism of the FA in 2010 when they handed Fabio Capello a new contract before he had led them into his first tournament, that summer’s World Cup in South Africa, where they failed to meet expectations and crashed out in the round of 16 to Germany.

Some will feel it is a similarly controversial move to hand Tuchel new terms before he has proven himself at this summer’s World Cup.

But a number of top club jobs such as Manchester United and Tottenham are likely to be vacant in the summer, and the FA will have taken into consideration the possibility of those jobs appealing to Tuchel when deciding to hand him a longer contract.

Tuchel is a proven manager who led Chelsea to Champions League glory in 2021 and also won league titles with Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-German and the German Cup with Borussia Dortmund.

FA CEO Bullingham said: “I am delighted Thomas has committed to stay with us through to the Euros in 2028. He was the right person for the job when he joined us for the World Cup campaign, and has only strengthened his reputation across the qualifiers. We know the players are right behind him, and the togetherness within the group is there for all to see.

“There is simply no better candidate available in world football. With his big-game experience, knowledge and passion, he gives the squad the very best chance for success – this summer and with the once-in-a generation Euros being hosted on these shores in two years’ time.

“In Thomas, Anthony [Barry, the assistant head coach] and the wider team, we have a perfect blend of English coaching and international expertise.

“Their full focus remains on doing as well as possible this summer, and by securing them early for 2028, we have taken away the potential distraction of contract renegotiations around the tournament.”

England face Croatia, Ghana and Panama in the group stage of the World Cup, where they will be among the favourites to win the tournament for the first time since 1966.

When Tuchel’s permanent predecessor Southgate spoke on the High Performance Podcast in 2025, he explained why he did not sign a new contract beyond Euro 2024 that the FA had offered him. England went on to lose in the final of that tournament and he stepped away from the role following defeat to Spain.

“They offered me a new contract,” Southgate said. “I didn’t think signing a new contract before the tournament would be a good idea, because I had seen Fabio Capello do that years earlier.

“It created a tension. ‘Why is he getting a new contract before the tournament? It should be after.’ I thought it actually increased the pressure on the team.”