Real Madrid, Man Utd and a World Cup: Football's wild coaching landscape and hiring dilemmas

The summer of 2025 is shaping up to be a crossroads moment for European super-clubs, and the ripple effects are already being felt from Manchester to Madrid, from London to Lisbon. England’s decision to extend Thomas Tuchel’s contract through Euro 2028 has removed one of the market’s most coveted names at precisely the moment Real Madrid and Manchester United are bracing for seismic change on their own benches. In the process, it has exposed a deeper shift: international football is no longer the career after-party for elite coaches—it is becoming the destination.

Tuchel’s choice was revealing. The German has only been in the England job for a year, yet the FA’s announcement that he will bypass a return to club football after the 2026 World Cup underlines how the international calendar now offers something the domestic grind cannot: time, autonomy and a shot at immortality. “He’s really enjoying the job,” chief executive Mark Bullingham said, while quietly confirming a break clause exists should the lure of a Champions League dugout become irresistible. For now, that door is closed to Madrid and United.

The same gravitational pull has kept Carlo Ancelotti in charge of Brazil until 2030, despite the 66-year-old Italian being the consensus choice inside the Bernabéu boardroom. Ancelotti’s continued presence in yellow and green means Real Madrid face the prospect of entering a new cycle without the coach who delivered two more European Cups in his second spell. It also leaves Florentino Pérez scanning a market that is suddenly short on sure things.

Pep Guardiola’s decade at Manchester City could end this summer; if it does, expect a sabbatical or a national-team adventure rather than a snap move to another club. Zinedine Zidane has spent six years waiting for the France job to open, and will finally succeed Didier Deschamps after the World Cup. Jürgen Klopp opted for the Red Bull global soccer role rather than the Germany post, and told Servus TV that Madrid’s recent dismissal of Xabi Alonso “triggered nothing in me”. The implication is clear: the biggest names are either unavailable or uninterested.

That forces clubs to gamble. Alonso, the former Leverkusen coach, is still linked with Liverpool despite the Anfield seat remaining occupied, while Spain could pivot to him if Luis de la Fuente underperforms in North America. Roberto Mancini flirted with West Ham and Nottingham Forest before accepting Qatar’s Al Sadd. Roberto De Zerbi showed Manchester United’s offer to Marseille’s squad as a motivational tool, then chose the Mediterranean over Old Trafford. Spurs, having sacked Ange Postecoglou’s predecessor, turned to Igor Tudor until the end of the season rather than wait for a marquee appointment.

The hesitation is understandable. Modern club managers are increasingly confined to tactics boards and match-day microphones; recruitment, contracts and even travel schedules are handled elsewhere. International coaches, by contrast, can scout, experiment and build dynasties without fretting about profit-and-sustainability spreadsheets. A World Cup win, as Julian Nagelsmann noted by staying with Germany, echoes far longer than a domestic double.

Yet the vacuum at club level is real. Who replaces Guardiola, Klopp, Ancelotti or Mourinho as the next transcendent figure? Mikel Arteta has transformed Arsenal but still lacks a Premier League crown. Enzo Maresca was jettisoned by Chelsea six months after lifting the Conference League and Club World Cup. Xavi has been idle since leaving Barcelona; Mauricio Pochettino’s stock never fully rebounded after the 2019 Champions League final; Erik ten Hag is technical director at Twente; Andre Villas-Boas is president of Porto. The conveyor belt that produced Guardiola, Klopp and Mourinho a decade ago is creaking.

Clubs are also pickier. They want a defined style, but not necessarily the abrasive personalities that come with it. Antonio Conte, a serial title-winner in Italy and England, is dismissed as too combustible. Cesc Fabregas, who holds equity in Como, is part of a generation that expects input beyond the touchline. De Zerbi travels with his own data scout. Owners, wary of ceding control, prefer coaches who stay in their lane. The result is a shallow pool of candidates who check every box.

Even success stories are context-dependent. Brentford sit seventh under rookie boss Keith Andrews, prompting fresh debate over how much of their rise was down to Thomas Frank. Brighton remain mid-table despite turnover that claimed Hughton, Potter, De Zerbi and Hurzeler, suggesting the Seagulls’ analytics infrastructure is the constant. Sevilla’s Europa League pedigree under Emery, Ramos and Mendilibar has rarely travelled beyond Andalusia. Kompany’s Bundesliga crown at Bayern is viewed warily because the Bavarians have won 12 of the last 13 titles; Allegri and Inzaghi reached Champions League finals with thinner Italian squads yet attract less buzz.

United, Madrid, Tottenham and others must decide whether to bet on potential—Andoni Iraola, Oliver Glasner, Ruben Amorim—or recycle proven winners written off as yesterday’s men. Break clauses complicate everything: Mourinho can leave Benfica 10 days after their final match, potentially freeing him for Madrid or Portugal. Alonso’s name will swirl as long as the Liverpool job remains occupied. Motta, Thiago, Chivu and Kompany are reminders that first steps at super-clubs can be perilous.

For now the English FA can relax. Tuchel has ruled out a club return for two and a half years, Bullingham can plan for Euro 2028, and the FA can avoid the awkward dance of succession. Elsewhere, presidents and sporting directors will spend the summer asking the same question: in a landscape where the best coaches are either entrenched internationally or scarred by the club meat-grinder, who is the right man to lead the next era—and what happens if they get it wrong?