‘I’ll never say never to managing my country, but I’m really happy now. As long as they’re not competing against the USA, I’ll always cheer on the Lionesses’: Emma Hayes on career future

Emma Hayes looks on during Chelsea's WSL match against Aston Villa in November 2023.
Emma Hayes is one of the most successful football coaches ever (Image credit: Getty Images)

USWNT boss Emma Hayes has said she has not ruled out managing England at some point in the future.

Hayes was Chelsea boss for 12 years before being appointed US manager in 2024.

She won gold with the team at the Paris Olympics, just a few months after winning a fifth consecutive Women's Super League title with Chelsea.

Emma Hayes: 'My vast experience in the club game has prepared me for international football'

United States women Olympics 2024 squad Emma Hayes of the United States waves to the crowd after a game between Mexico and USWNT at Red Bull Arena on July 13, 2024 in Harrison, New Jersey. (Photo by Brad Smith/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

Emma Hayes has won Olympic gold with America (Image credit: Getty Images)

Hayes has long been linked with the England job but the position is currently filled by the most successful Lionesses boss there has ever been, Sarina Wiegman.

Wiegman, who won the Euros in 2022 and took England to the 2023 World Cup final, is in the role until at least 2027. But would Hayes consider the job if the opportunity arose?

Sarina Wiegman will succeed Phil Neville in 2021

Sarina Wiegman is in charge of England

She told FourFourTwo: “I’ll never say never to managing my country, but I’m really happy with what I’m doing now and I’ll be in the USA for a minimum of four years.

“As long as they’re not competing against the USA, I’ll always be cheering on the Lionesses. I’m always going to be English and want them to do well. But we all know they’ve got an amazing manager in Sarina.”

Hayes added she told the Football Association she wasn't interested in pursuing the England job when it was available.

She has been impressive as USWNT boss, bringing them golden success after they crashed out of the World Cup in the last 16 under former manager Vlatko Andonovski in 2023.

Hayes, who in FourFourTwo's view will lead the US to more World Cup glory, added: "International football is for more experienced coaches,” she says. “My vast experience in the club game has prepared me for this. You only get to coach for a small percentage of time, but a lot of it is building strategy. I am enjoying it more than I’d anticipated.

“I very much enjoy all of the other elements off the pitch, building the infrastructure. There was definitely many a year when this would never have interested me, as I loved being on the grass every day. But this is the right time in my life now to be doing this job.”

Sarah Rendell
Women's football editor

Sarah joined the FourFourTwo team in September 2024 in a freelance role. She also writes for The Guardian, BBC and Rugby World where she specialises in women's football and rugby. Sarah has a bachelors degree in English and a master's in newspaper journalism.

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