England boss Gareth Southgate urged to stay until 2026 World Cup: 'The lads would love it'
England manager Gareth Southgate has been urged to stay on for two more years by one of his key performers at Euro 2024
![England manager Gareth Southgate celebrates victory over the Netherlands in the semi-finals of Euro 2024.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fcNJr8TcvUghoiZ3ULCrfV-320-80.jpg)
England manager Gareth Southgate has been urged to stay on until the 2026 World Cup by one of his key players at Euro 2024.
Southgate leads England into a second successive European Championship final on Sunday as the Three Lions face Spain in Berlin amid hopes he can steer the men's team to a first major honour since the 1966 World Cup.
The former England defender has been in charge since September 2016 and has now overseen more than 100 games for his country in that time.
Why England FINALLY Came Good Against The Netherlands
The 53-year-old is out of contract in December, but reports on Saturday morning claimed he will be offered a fresh deal by the Football Association – whatever happens in Sunday's final.
Speaking ahead of the game against Spain, midfielder Declan Rice backed Southgate to stay for another two years, insisting that the manager had the backing of the whole squad, despite criticism from fans and the media for some poor performances at Euro 2024.
"I woke up to the news this morning that the FA wanted him to stay until '26. This journey and this road that he has been on has been so special," Rice said.
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
"Hopefully we can do something special for him for sure and I know for a fact the lads would love him to stay on until '26, there's no doubt about that.
"The way he looks after us, how calm he is, how he is as a man-manager, how he is on the training pitch with us, he's top.
"But none of us have spoken to him. That's none of our business. Whatever he wants to do, whatever makes him happy, I'm sure he'll make the right decision. But I'm sure he's got the backing of everyone to stay on."
Get a free live stream to watch Euro 2024 from anywhere in the world and catch the final stages of the summer's big tournament
More Euro 2024 stories
'It's in our hands' – Gareth Southgate on what he wants from England in Euro 2024 final vs Spain
Euro 2024: England's Kyle Walker on how final away from Wembley could benefit Three Lions vs Spain
England hero compares Three Lions to Real Madrid ahead of Euro 2024 final
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Ben Hayward is the Weekend Editor of FourFourTwo. A European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.
‘At no point did I think we’d lost 1999 Champions League Final – we’d scored in injury time a few times that season. What was surprising was scoring twice!’: Peter Schmeichel relives Manchester United's miraculous victory
'It was the best game I ever took part in – just the most crazy match, everything happened': Peter Schmeichel picks favourite Manchester United match he ever played in... and it’s not the Champions League Final