FA chief executive Mark Bullingham believes that appointing Thomas Tuchel as England's new manager offers the best shot at ending the nation's 60-year wait for World Cup glory in 2026.
The former Chelsea, Bayern Munich, and Paris Saint-Germain boss will take charge on 1 January 2025, ahead of the qualification campaign for the tournament set to be hosted across Canada, Mexico, and the USA.
Tuchel's appointment comes exactly three months after Gareth Southgate stepped down, following a second consecutive European Championship final. Although the FA was eager for Southgate to continue despite the loss to Spain in the final, Bullingham revealed that discussions about his successor had already begun before Euro 2024 even kicked off.
“We did a lot of work before the Euros on what was the ideal characteristic and profile of an England manager, to help us to give us the best chance of winning in a tournament and Thomas fitted that really well," Bullingham told BBC 5 Live.
“He was always on our target list, so we made a proactive approach to speak to him, in amongst speaking to a number of other people in the industry, because we wanted to run a thorough process.
“He was outstanding, he gave a really strong presentation, outlined how he felt he could help us win and the chemistry felt really good and we concluded the partnership quite soon after that.”
Tuchel’s appointment is widely viewed as a major coup by many England supporters, but some fan groups and sections of the media feel strongly that an Englishman should be in charge of the national team - especially given the success Southgate had during his tenure.
Among the critics is former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher, who publicly voiced his disagreement with the decision.
"When I think of England, we are so close to winning a major tournament with so much good work that has gone into producing these players at St George's Park, it just doesn't feel right to me that we have a foreign coach," he said.
"It's not just about England - I don't think Italy should, I don't think Germany should, I don't think France should. Portugal have it at the moment with Roberto Martinez which I find strange. That's my take on it. I'm not bothered either way.
“I must be perfectly honest, I'm not the most patriotic of people. It's not just about 'the England manager has to be this'. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. England have got a brilliant manager but I think England should have an English manager."
Bullingham, however, defended the decision, stating that the FA had considered English candidates for the role. Ultimately, they chose Tuchel, believing he would provide the Three Lions with the best chance of capturing World Cup glory in 2026.
“We did interview some English coaches, amongst interviewing some international coaches, but our focus was on having someone to give us our best chance of winning in the USA and we think we have got that,” added Bullingham.
“We felt it was really important for our fans, for the players, for the whole country, that we appointed the coach that would give our talented group of players the best chance to win in the USA and that is what we believe we have done.”
