England head coach Sarina Wiegman is “not for sale”, says the England Football Association CEO Mark Bullingham. Wiegman, who has reached the last five consecutive major tournament finals with the Netherlands and England — a 100 per cent record that no manager has done before — is under contract until after the 2027 World Cup. Bullingham described the Dutchwoman, who joined in September 2021, as a “special coach” who has an “incredible tournament record”. But when asked how many millions another
Wiegman, who has reached the last five consecutive major tournament finals with the Netherlands and England — a 100 per cent record that no manager has done before — is under contract until after the 2027 World Cup.
Bullingham described the Dutchwoman, who joined in September 2021, as a “special coach” who has an “incredible tournament record”. But when asked how many millions another federation would have to pay for Wiegman, the FA chief would not name a price and said: “She’s not for sale.”
Bullingham is also not concerned Wiegman will be tempted to leave for other national teams or domestic clubs. Her assistant Arjan Veurink will depart after this tournament, despite having a contract with England until 2027, to become the Netherlands head coach. Wiegman has already selected two new Dutch assistants to replace him: Arvid Smit and Janneke Bijl.
“We are committed to her until 2027 and she is committed to us,” Bullingam told media on Thursday from England’s Dolder Grand hotel in Zurich. “We have a new team (of assistants) coming in for her. We haven’t quite started working on the plans for (post) 2027 but I know her focus, hopefully after success on Sunday, will shift quite quickly to 2027.”
Discussions regarding contract negotiations usually happen a tournament cycle or a year in advance and no such conversations have taken place. When the inevitable question arose about the possibility of Wiegman managing England’s men’s team — as Thomas Tuchel’s contract expires after the 2026 World Cup — Bullingham said it was “almost disrespectful to assume the men’s job is more senior to the women’s”.
“That is not the way we view it,” he said. “I said two years ago (at the 2023 World Cup) Sarina could do any job in football, she is an amazing talent and we are delighted to have her running the women’s team until 2027.”
“I see the work she has done with players and the relationships and connections she builds in camps,” added Bullingham, who hugged Wiegman straight after the full-time whistle following the dramatic quarter-final penalty shootout win against Sweden.
“We both said things we probably couldn’t repeat here. I was just so proud of her. It’s brilliant how they pulled through.
“It is phenomenal. She is just a cool head in the way she transmits that onto the pitch. She looks like the coolest person in the stadium and I have no doubts that helps in critical moments. We are lucky to have her.”
England will face Spain in the European Championship final on Sunday, a repeat of the 2023 World Cup final which England lost 1-0.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
England, Women's Soccer, Women's Euros
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Category: General Sports
