Newsletters
According to tournament data, 28 of the 48 national teams at the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be managed by foreign coaches, while 20 teams have chosen domestic managers.
The competition, co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, will mark the first World Cup to feature 48 teams. Foreign influence on the touchline is felt most acutely in Europe, where seven coaches are set to lead nations other than their own, while 20 European coaches overall have taken charge of foreign squads.
Argentine coaches form the largest single nationality among managers, with six representatives at the tournament.
| Coach | Nationality | Team |
| Lionel Scaloni | Argentina | Argentina |
| Nestor Lorenzo | Argentina | Colombia |
| Marcelo Bielsa | Argentina | Uruguay |
| Sebastian Beccacece | Argentina | Ecuador |
| Gustavo Alfaro | Argentina | Paraguay |
| Mauricio Pochettino | Argentina | United States |
France follows with five coaches working abroad, Spain with four, and Germany and Italy with three each. Notable foreign appointments include Italian Vincenzo Montella for Türkiye, Spaniard Roberto Martinez for Portugal, and American Jesse Marsch for Canada.
At 38, Germany's Julian Nagelsmann is the youngest head coach in the tournament. He succeeded Hansi Flick and previously led Germany at the 2024 European Championship. The oldest coach is Dick Advocaat of the Netherlands, age 78, who manages Curacao and has guided them to their first World Cup appearance.
Both coaches are in Group E and will face each other in their opening match at Houston Stadium.
The average age of the 48 coaches is 57.3, an increase of 5.4 years compared to the Qatar 2022 tournament.
| Coach | Team | World Cup won |
| Didier Deschamps | France | 2018 |
| Lionel Scaloni | Argentina | 2022 |
Deschamps and Scaloni met in the Qatar 2022 final, where Scaloni's Argentina defeated France. If either wins again in 2026, they will match the record of Italian coach Vittorio Pozzo, the only manager to have won the World Cup twice. Deschamps also won the trophy as a player when France hosted the tournament in 1998.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
