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Gareth Southgate Steps down as England Manager

Jerry Walker / Soccer / July 16, 2024

Gareth Southgate Steps down as England Manager

Two days after England lost the Euro 2024 final, manager Gareth Southgate announced on Tuesday that he is stepping down from his role.

“As a proud Englishman, it has been the honour of my life to play for England and to manage England,” Southgate said in a statement. “It has meant everything to me, and I have given it my all.”

“But it’s time for change, and for a new chapter. Sunday’s final in Berlin against Spain was my final game as England manager.”

This ends Southgate’s eight-year tenure as the manager of England. Over his time he led England to places that no manager had since Alf Ramsey in 1966.

Under Southgate, England made it to the World Cup semifinal in 2018, the Euro final in 2021, and a second Euro final this year. In his 102 matches, England won 61 of them while losing just 17.

The Euro 2021 Final was the first England had been in since 1966. Despite losing on penalties to Italy, Southgate helped give fans around England lasting memories and something to be proud of in a team that has disappointed time and time again.

While there has been a lot of slack towards Southgate’s tactics this past month, he will still go down as one of the most successful managers England has had in the past 30 years.

Prior to taking over the England job in 2016, the former England international player managed Middlesbrough from 2006 to 2009 and then the U21 England team from 2013 to 2016.

As a player, Southgate made 503 appearances for Crystal Palace, Aston Villa, and Middlesbrough. He also had 57 caps for England, but most notably missed a penalty at Euro 1996 that sent England out in the semifinals.

He did redeem his mistake by leading England to not one but two penalty shootout wins as a manager guiding the new generation of talent better than he had been led.