Franz Beckenbauer
Manager of West Germany 1986 and 1990 world cup finals

Date of Birth – 11th September 1945
Born – Munich (Germany)

A legend of the game Franz Beckenbaur is one of only 2 men, along with Brazil’s Mario Zagallo, to have won the World Cup as both a player and a manager. However, he stands alone as being the only player to have both captained (in 1974) and coached (in 1990) a World Cup winning side, making him, without a doubt one of the greatest managers of all time.

Beckenbaur started his managerial career in July 1984, replacing Jupp Derwall as manager of the West German national side, despite having no previous management experience. He helped his team qualify for the world cup finals in Mexico in 1986. At the World cup West Germany surpassed all their expectations and reached the final, however they lost a thriller 3-2 to Maradona’s Argentina. Two years later Beckenbaur helped West Germany reach the semi-finals of the European Championships, however they failed to progress beyond that stage.

At Italia 90, West Germany won the World Cup, going undefeated throughout the entire tournament and his side were magnificent especially in their opening matches against Yugoslavia and UAE. West Germany beat Argentina 1-0 in a replay of the previous final, though the game was nothing the spectacle of four years earlier, and Beckenbauer sealed his place in World cup history, as he became the first man to win the world cup as a player and as a manager. After the world cup finals he retired as manager of West Germany. He moved on to France and managed Marseilles for one season and in 1994 he took charge of Bayer Munich for two seasons, and now serves as their President.

 

Bobby Robson
Manager of England during the 1986 and 1990 world cup finals

Date of Birth-18th February 1933
Birth place – County Durham, England

Bobby Robson was appointed manager of England in September 1982, making his managerial debut against Denamrk. Robson helped guide England into the 1986 world cup finals.

England struggled in their two opening games and he received a lot of criticism. Hover England improved as the world cup progressed and they lost to Argentina in a controversial quarterfinal match, remember for two contributions, one outrageous, and one pure genius, from Diego Maradona. Robson was put under a lot of pressure after the European Championships two years later as England lost all three games. However two years later it was Robson’s last major tournament as manager of England.

Italia 90 proved to be Robson’s most successful month as manager of England, and a fitting swansong. England qualified through the group phase effectively and they put on brilliant displays against Belgium in the second round and stunned Cameroon in the quarter finals with two late goals. Unfortunately for Robson and England, they lost in a penalty shoot out against West Germany in the semi-finals. Robson resigned as the manager of England after the 1990 world cup finals on a high.

 

Carlos Alberto Parreira
World cup winning coach of Brazil, 1994 world cup finals

Carlos Alberto is one of only two coaches, along with Bora Muilutinovic, to have managed four different countries into a world cup. Parreira was the physical preparation manager at the world cup in Mexico in 1970, which Brazil won. He took charge of the Kuwait national team in the 1982 world cup. Eight years later he managed the United Arab Emirates during Italia 90.

His biggest achievement without a doubt was coaching the Brazilian side that won the world cup in USA in 1994. Brazil beat Italy in the final in a penalty shoot out. He helped to motivate and structure the 1994 world cup winning Brazilian side.

 

Aime Jacquet
Manager of France at 1998 world cup finals

Date of Birth – 27th November 1941
Born – Sail-sous-Couzan, France

Aime Jacquet took charge of the French team right after the 1994 world cup finals in USA, for which France dismally failed to qualify. His first major tournament with France was the 1996 European Championships in England. He helped France reach the semi-finals of Euro 96 however they lost on penalties to Czech Republic. As France were hosting the 1998 world cup finals, they didn’t have to play in the qualifying rounds of the world cup. So Aime Jacquet had two years of preparation for the 1998 world cup finals.

This meant that when the tournament finally came around, the French were well prepared. They won their opening three matches comfortably. France beat Paraguay in the second round, with Laurent Blanc scoring the world cup’s first ever golden goal before beating Italy and Croatia which took them to the final of the 1998 world cup.

A Zinedine Zidane inspired France beat a lacklustre Brazil 3-0 in the final and as a result they were crowned World champions in front of 75,000 rabid Frenchmen. Jacquet assisted France to winning the world cup and sent the entire French population into a few weeks celebration. He is without doubt one of the greatest managers of all time.

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Luiz Felipe Scolari
Manager of Brazil 2002 world cup finals

Scolari was appointed manager of Brazil in June 2002, taking over from previous manager Emerson Leao. Scolari struggled to help Brazil reach the world cup finals as they only came fourth in their South American qualifying group.

Yet, he led the Brazilian national team to winning the world cup in 2002. Brazil won all their matches in the world cup. They beat Turkey, China and Costa Rica in the opening round. They defeated Belgium 2-0 in the second round, followed by a 2-1 victory over England in the quarterfinals, when Ronaldinho famously lobbed David Seaman. They beat Turkey in the semis and he led the Brazil team that beat Germany 2-0 in the 2002 world cup final. He resigned from his post of being the manager of Brazil right after the world cup and he left as a glorious world cup winner. He now coaches the Portuguese national side.

 

Vittorio Pozzo
World Cup winning manager of Italy 1934 & 1938

Not as acclaimed as the others due to being a pre-war manager Pozzo was, nevertheless, an excellent coach who led Italy to two consecutive World Cups, with an Olympic title sandwiched in between.

After leading a largely unknown side to victory in France in 1934, a tournament which many South American nations boycotted, the addition of a number of players from the great Argentina side added strength to the squad, and, when combined with Pozzo’s managerial ability and tactical nous, helped them retain the title 4 years later. This leaves Pozzo as the only manager to win the world cup twice, cementing his place as of the greatest managers in its history.