Sarina Petronella Wiegman (; born 26 October 1969), also known as Sarina Wiegman-Glotzbach, is a Dutch football

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

and former player who has been the manager of the England women's national team since September 2021. In her playing career, Wiegman started out as a

central midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

before moving to

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indus ...

. In 1989, she attended the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, where she played for the

North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer The North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Atlantic Coast Conference of NCAA Division I soccer.

team. Returning to the Netherlands, she joined the women's team of

Ter Leede Ter Leede is a football club based in Sassenheim, Netherlands. The club was established on 30 April 1930, as a merger of the clubs ''Poellaan'' and ''Roda''. The men's team is currently playing in the Dutch Hoofdklasse, after being relegated fr ...

in addition to her job as a

physical education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorat ...

teacher. With Ter Leede, she won the Dutch championship and the KNVB Cup once. Wiegman represented the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

from 1987 to 2001. Although she was capped 104 times for her country (which was initially recognised by the

KNVB The Royal Dutch Football Association (, ; KNVB ) is the governing body of football in the Netherlands. It organises the main Dutch football leagues (Eredivisie and Eerste Divisie), the amateur leagues, the KNVB Cup, and the Dutch men's and wome ...

), caps won against non-FIFA-affiliated opponents resulted in her official cap total standing just short of a century at 99. After retiring in 2003, Wiegman began her coaching career with the women's teams of Ter Leede and ADO Den Haag. In 2014, she became the assistant manager of the national team. In 2016, Wiegman received her full coaching licence and became the first woman to work as coach for a Dutch professional football team. After being appointed as the head coach of the Dutch national team, Wiegman led them to victory at the

UEFA Women's Euro 2017 The 2017 UEFA European Women's Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Women's Euro 2017, was the 12th edition of the UEFA Women's Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organised by UEFA for the women's national tea ...

. Two years later, the team became runners-up of the

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. I ...

. In August 2020, it was announced that Wiegman would manage the England women's national team from September 2021 following the end of Phil Neville's contract. She remained manager of the Netherlands for the Olympics, hoping to bring home a medal at the 2020 Olympics, but the Netherlands were eliminated at the quarter-final stage. Then, she finally became the England manager and led the Lionesses to victory at the

UEFA Women's Euro 2022 The 2022 UEFA European Women's Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Women's Euro 2022 or simply Euro 2022, was the 13th edition of the UEFA Women's Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organised by UE ...

on home soil. It was the first trophy for an English senior team of either gender since the men's team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup.

Early and personal life

Wiegman was born in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

and started playing football on the streets at an early age. At the age of six, she joined ESDO from

Wassenaar Wassenaar (; population: in ) is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and Dorp (town), town located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, on the western coast of the Netherlands. An affluent suburb of The ...

, where she played alongside boys. She also played for local side HSV Celeritas, where she could join the women's team. She is married to Marten Glotzbach and they have two daughters Lauren and Sacha.

Playing career

In 1987, Wiegman joined KFC '71, where she won the KNVB Cup in the same year. In 1988, while in China for the

1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament The 1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament, or International Women's Football Tournament, was organised by FIFA in China from 1 to 12 June 1988. The competition was a test to study if a global women's World Cup was feasible following the experi ...

, she met

USWNT The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States in international women's soccer. The team is the most successful in international women's soccer, winning four Women's World Cup titles (1991, 1999, 2015, a ...

head coach

Anson Dorrance Albert Anson Dorrance IV (born April 9, 1951) is an American soccer coach. He is currently the head coach of the women's soccer program at the University of North Carolina. He has one of the most successful coaching records in the history of ath ...

, who invited her to come study at the

and play for the

team, which she did in 1989. At North Carolina, Wiegman played alongside such players as

Mia Hamm Mariel Margaret Hamm-Garciaparra (; born March 17, 1972) is an American retired professional soccer player, two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion. Hailed as a soccer icon, she played as a forward for the ...

Kristine Lilly Kristine Marie Lilly Heavey (; born July 22, 1971) is an American retired soccer player. She was a member of the United States women's national team for 23 years and is the most-capped football player in the history of the sport (men's or wome ...

and

Carla Overbeck Carla Werden Overbeck (; born May 9, 1968) is a retired American soccer player and longtime member and captain of the United States women's national soccer team. She is currently an assistant coach of Duke University's women's soccer team, wher ...

. They became

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

champions in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

. Wiegman later described the team quality and working conditions as being "of the highest level," which made for a stark contrast with the situation in the Netherlands when she returned there after one year. Here, all women's players had to work aside from football. Wiegman became a

teacher at the secondary school Segbroek College in The Hague, Netherlands, a job she would keep for the rest of her playing career. In 1994, Wiegman joined

, where she would win two Dutch championships (2001 and 2003) and one KNVB Cup (2001). In 2003, she retired after becoming pregnant with her second child.

International career

Wiegman gained 104 caps for

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, scoring three goals, between 1987 and 2001. She also captained the team. In 1986, at the age of 16, Wiegman was first selected for the Netherlands. On 23 May 1987, at the age of 17, she made her debut in an away match against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, which was

Dick Advocaat Dirk Nicolaas Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former football player and coach who is currently the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag. Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a coach, including three stint ...

's only match in charge of the Netherlands Women. She played at the

, where the Netherlands reached the quarter-finals. Wiegman also helped the Netherlands reach the quarter-finals of the

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

and

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...

European Championships, although they never reached the final tournament of an official World Cup or European Championship. On 9 April 2001, Wiegman gained her 100th cap in a home friendly against

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

, becoming the first Dutch footballer to do so. Two days later, she was honoured with a shield awarded by the men's head coach

Louis van Gaal Aloysius Paulus Maria "Louis" van Gaal (; born 8 August 1951) is a Dutch former football player and manager. At club level, he served as manager of Ajax, Barcelona, AZ Alkmaar, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, as well as having three spe ...

. During his speech, he said: "I have a lot of respect for Sarina. For the men, everything is arranged. Here, this is much more difficult." Wiegman played her final international game on 14 June 2001, a 2–0 away defeat against the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. It was later revealed that five of her caps were against non-FIFA affiliated opponents, so her official cap total now stands at 99.

Managerial career

Ter Leede

On 24 January 2006, it was announced that Wiegman would become manager of

. With the team, she won the Dutch championship and the KNVB Cup in 2007.

ADO Den Haag Women

In the summer of 2007, Wiegman became manager of the women's team of ADO Den Haag, who would be competing in the newly established Women's Eredivisie. In 2012, she led ADO to the Eredivisie title and KNVB Cup. In 2013, ADO were once again victorious in the KNVB Cup.

Netherlands Women

Assistant coach

On 1 August 2014, Wiegman left ADO to become assistant coach of the Netherlands women's national football team, as well as coordinator of the women's national under-19 team. On 27 March 2015, it was announced that Wiegman would be attending the

course to obtain a coaching licence, becoming only the third woman to do so, after

Vera Pauw Vera Pauw (; born 18 January 1963) is a Dutch football coach and former player. She currently manages the Republic of Ireland women's national football team. She has managed several national women's football teams, including Scotland, Netherland ...

and Hesterine de Reus. On 2 July 2015, it was announced that she would have an internship at Sparta Rotterdam. On 1 August 2015, following

Roger Reijners Roger Reijners (born 10 February 1964) is a Dutch football coach and former player. He is currently assistant manager of MVV Maastricht. Playing career Reijners turned professional with Fortuna Sittard and played in the 1–0 KNVB Cup Final defea ...

' dismissal as head coach of the Netherlands Women, Wiegman was appointed as interim head coach. This lasted until 1 October, when

Arjan van der Laan Arjan van der Laan (born 10 November 1969) is a Dutch former professional footballer, who played as a midfielder. He is the current head coach of the seventh-tier Tweede Klasse club RKSV Altior from Langeraar. Early life Van der Laan was bor ...

assumed his duties as the new head coach. Wiegman subsequently became assistant coach again. On 31 July 2016, Wiegman received her UEFA Pro coaching licence, having completed the Dutch Football Association's coaching course and a one-year internship at Sparta Rotterdam. In an interview with the KNVB, she said that having seen first-hand the high level of professionalism of men's football in the Netherlands, she hoped to help bring women's football in the Netherlands to the same level. On 3 October 2016, it was announced that Wiegman would become temporary assistant of

Ole Tobiasen Ole Tobiasen (born 8 July 1975) is a Danish football manager and former player. He is an assistant manager with the Dutch club Heerenven. As a player, Tobiasen played as a right-back or centre-back for a number of clubs in Denmark, the Nether ...

at Jong Sparta Rotterdam (who appear in the

2016–17 Tweede Divisie The 2016–17 Tweede Divisie season was the first edition of the Dutch third tier since its initial dissolution from the 1970-71 season and the fifteenth overall using "Tweede Divisie" name. Fourteen teams were completed from the Topklasse Saturd ...

), in addition to her work as Netherlands Women assistant. In doing so, she became the first female coach at a Dutch professional football organisation.

Head coach

Sarina_Wiegman_trains_the_Dutch_national_team

On 23 December 2016, Van der Laan was sacked by the KNVB and Wiegman was once again appointed interim head coach of the Netherlands Women. On 13 January 2017, the KNVB announced that Wiegman was installed as head coach on a permanent basis. At the same time,

Foppe de Haan Foppe Geert de Haan (, born 26 June 1943) is a Dutch association football, football coach. He is known for his long association with Friesland, Frisian club SC Heerenveen. De Haan was the manager of the Tuvalu national football team during 2011 ...

was appointed as her assistant. Wiegman was appointed head coach six months before the start of the

, for which the Netherlands had automatically qualified as hosts. However, the team had been losing four out of five friendly matches, and morale was low. Wiegman subsequently worked on improving players' confidence and on a change in playing style to more attacking football. At the European Championship, the Netherlands won every match, culminating in a 4–2 victory over

in the

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

. The team also received praise for their attractive playing style. The win signified the Netherlands Women's first European Championship title and first ever major honour in women's football. Wiegman became the second Dutch coach to lead the national team to a major honour, after

Rinus Michels Marinus Jacobus Hendricus Michels (; 9 February 1928 – 3 March 2005) was a Dutch football player and coach. He played his entire career for AFC Ajax, which he later managed, and played for and later managed the Netherlands national team ...

at the men's

UEFA Euro 1988 The 1988 UEFA European Football Championship final tournament was held in West Germany from 10 to 25 June 1988. It was the eighth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and supported by UEFA. The tournament crowned the Nethe ...

. On 23 October 2017, Wiegman was awarded The Best FIFA Women's Coach title at that year's The Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony, ahead of Denmark coach

Nils Nielsen Nils Herbert Kromann Nielsen (born 3 November 1971) is a Danish football manager. Since 14 November 2018, he is the head coach of the Switzerland women's national football team. Nielsen is best known for his tenure with the Denmark women's natio ...

and

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

coach Gérard Prêcheur. Two days later, she was awarded as a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau at a ceremony which saw the entire European Championship-winning team receive the same honour. After securing qualification for the

, Wiegman led the Netherlands to the final of the tournament, in which they were defeated 0–2 by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The team again received praise for their style of play on the way to the final. On 9 July 2019, it was announced that a likeness of Wiegman would be added to the statue garden of the Dutch Football Association,

, for her contributions to Dutch football. She was the first woman to receive this honour.

England Women

In August 2020,

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world a ...

announced that Wiegman had signed a four-year contract and would take the job of manager of the

England women's national football team The England women's national football team, also known as the Lionesses, have been governed by the Football Association (FA) since 1993, having been previously administered by the Women's Football Association (WFA). England played its first i ...

, starting in September 2021, taking over from

Phil Neville Philip John Neville (born 21 January 1977) is an English football manager and former player, who is the head coach of MLS team Inter Miami CF. He is also the co-owner of Salford City, along with several of his former Manchester United teamma ...

. Her appointment made her the first non-British permanent Lionesses manager. After Neville resigned before his tenure was over, Norwegian

Hege Riise Hege Riise (born 18 July 1969) is a Norwegian football coach and former midfield player who is coaching the Norway women's national football team. One of the best footballers of her generation, she won the FIFA Women's World Cup, the Olympic Gam ...

assumed the role on an interim basis in January 2021 until Wiegman could take over. Wiegman's first game in charge was an 8–0 win against

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

to begin 2023 World Cup qualification. On 30 November 2021, Wiegman's England side set a new national record with a 20–0 win over Latvia during World Cup qualifying. The previous record was 13–0 against Hungary, set in 2005. The match was Wiegman's sixth in charge and maintained her 100% record with the Lionesses, outscoring their opponents 53–0 during that time. Wiegman managed England to victory in the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 Final with a 2–1 victory against Germany at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

. She became the fourth manager – all women's – to retain the Euros title and the first to win the tournament with two different countries, having coached her native Netherlands to the title in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

. On 25 August 2022, following her triumph with the Lionesses, she won the

UEFA Women's Coach of the Year Award The UEFA Women's Coach of the Year Award is an association football award given to the manager coaching a women's football club in Europe that is considered the best in the previous season of both club and national team competition. The award, cr ...

for the 2021–22 season. In December 2022, Wiegman was appointed as an

Honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) "for services to association football", in recognition of her role in the Lionesses' success.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

; KFC '71 * KNVB Cup: 1986–87 ; North Carolina Tar Heels *

NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship The NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship, sometimes known as the Women's College Cup, is an American college soccer tournament conducted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and determines the Division I women's national ...

; Ter Leede * Dutch championship: 2000–01, 2002–03 * KNVB Cup: 2000–01

Manager

; Ter Leede * Dutch championship: 2006–07 * KNVB Cup: 2006–07 ; ADO Den Haag Women *

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...

: 2011–12 * KNVB Cup: 2011–12, 2012–13 ; Netherlands Women * FIFA Women's World Cup runner-up:

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

UEFA Women's Championship The UEFA European Women's Championship, also called the UEFA Women's Euro, held every four years, is the main competition in women's association football between national teams of the UEFA confederation. The competition is the women's equivalen ...

; England Women *

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

Arnold Clark Cup The Arnold Clark Cup is an invitational women's association football tournament hosted by The Football Association, starting in 2022. It is named after car retailer Arnold Clark, who signed a multi-year sponsorship deal. ITV acts as the competiti ...

Individual

''Bondsridder'' ("Association Knight"): 2012 * The Best FIFA Women's Coach:

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

* Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau: 2017 * UEFA Women's Coach of the Year: 2021–22 * IFFHS World's Best Woman National Coach: 2020, 2022 *

Freedom of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom o ...

(announced 1 August 2022) * BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award:

*Honorary CBE:

2022 Special Honours As part of the British honours system, Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative, operational honours, political honours and other honours awarded ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wiegman, Sarina 1969 births Living people Footballers from The Hague Dutch women's footballers Women's association football midfielders Women's association football defenders Netherlands women's international footballers North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer players Dutch expatriate sportspeople in England Dutch expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States Dutch expatriate football managers Dutch football managers Ter Leede managers ADO Den Haag (women) managers Netherlands women's national football team managers UEFA Women's Championship-winning managers Knights of the Order of Orange-Nassau 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup managers Female association football managers Ter Leede players UEFA Women's Euro 2022 managers England women's national football team managers UEFA Women's Euro 2017 players Honorary Commanders of the Order of the British Empire