Among all sports, it’s well-known that a team’s accomplishments rely not only on the players, but the management as well. Coaches play a vital role in a team’s performance and success. In women’s soccer, there have been many incredible coaches – women and men – who have helped lift the sport to its place today. Women’s soccer still has a long way to go to reach the same level of popularity as its men's counterpart, but with continuous stellar coaching and phenomenal talent among players, the game should soon garner more attention among sports fans.
Discover the top women’s soccer coaches in recent years from around the world!
1. Sarina Wiegman
In 2015, Wiegman became only the third woman in history to pursue the KNVB course for obtaining a coaching license, earning her UEFA Pro coaching license in 2016. Afterwards, she became the first female coach at a Dutch professional organisation.
In her first year as head coach for the Netherlands, Wiegman was responsible for pulling the team out of a rut where performance and morale were low. In just 6 months, she pulled the team in a new direction, allowing them to win every match at the European Championship. This was the Netherlands Women's first European Championship title and first-ever major honour in women's football.
Since then, she has worked to bring even more successes to her teams. Shortly after moving to the English team, Wiegman helped the club secure a victory in the Women’s World Cup. Her consistent efforts for her teams make her easily one of the best female coaches in women’s soccer.
2. Emma Hayes
After her would-be soccer career was cut short by an irreversible ankle injury at age 17, Hayes pursued a university degree, where she coached the women’s team at Liverpool Hope. In 2002, after completing her degree, she became the youngest coach in the USL W-League with the Long Island Lady Riders (now called the Long Island Rough Riders). That year, Hayes was named the league’s coach of the season.
In 2005, she returned to England to become the assistant coach for the first team of the Arsenal Ladies, which achieved many victories over the next three seasons. She took a break from coaching after her firing in 2010, but stepped up in the second half of the 2012 season to replace Matt Beard after his resignation at Chelsea.
After a rocky few seasons with the English club, which saw plenty of wins and losses, the team and Hayes hit their stride in 2019. This era is known by many as being one of the best teams ever, and Hayes was the first woman manager to reach the Champions League final in 12 years. That Chelsea configuration secured five doubles and one treble in nine seasons.
After a fruitful many seasons with Chelsea, Hayes left the team to pursue becoming the head coach for the US women’s national team, just two months before the start of the 2024 Olympics. There, she led the USWNT to a complete sweep, securing gold in Paris.
Hayes has coached in a few of the best women's soccer leagues available.
3. Vic Akers
Akers’ career as head coach for the women’s Arsenal team is typically described as “the most successful of all time.” Of course, there was nothing to compare it to at the time, since Akers co-founded the team in ‘87.
Under his leadership, the team won over 35 trophies, including dominating the FA Cups and League Cups after the turn of the century. He is known for his ability to ensure players work together and at their best, even in less-than-ideal circumstances. One notable event in his tenure was when the star striker, Kelly Smith, was absent from a match due to suspension; the team was able to make up for the lost talent and win the Champions League final. As of January 2025, Akers’ team is still the only English club to win the UEFA Women’s Cup (2007).
For his achievements in women’s soccer coaching, Akers was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2010.
4. Pia Sundhage
Although Sundhage’s coaching style doesn’t tend to create the incredible plays and excitement on the pitch that fans typically look for, it doesn’t mean her coaching isn’t top-notch. On the contrary, she is known for her ability to nurture her players as individuals and give them the ability to enjoy the aspects of soccer that each of them enjoys most. In short, she’s a coach for the players, not a coach for the fans.
And this approach can and does lead to success! Although she doesn’t have a list of achievements as long or illustrious as some other coaches, Sundhage has led quite a few of her teams to victory. She is the only manager to win Olympic gold twice.
5. Jonatan Giráldez
From an early age, Giráldez knew he wanted to be involved with soccer. And when he started playing the game himself, he realised his true passion was in coaching and management rather than on the pitch.
He joined the Barcelona team as assistant to another famed coach, Lluis Cortes, giving him an advantage when he took over as head coach. Under his guidance, Barça managed to secure 10 out of the available 12 trophies in a three-season period.
Not impressed? How about in 2022-23, when the team was down and able to stage a comeback in the UWCL final to beat Wolfsburg (who were two-time winners)? Or when Giráldez’s team managed to beat the reigning champions, Lyon, in the final the next year, earning back-to-back titles?
His coaching style even helped the team succeed in the face of injured star players like Alexia Putellas and Mapi Leon.
With Giráldez being so young and starting strong in his first season with the US, everyone is anticipating even more great things coming from the coaching star.
6. Desiree Ellis
Ellis is a founding member of the South Africa women’s national team for which she played and vice-captained, and now coaches. While the Banyana Banyana team might not have as many flashy titles and awards as the European teams, that’s only because they have fewer opportunities at such things.
Ellis’s leadership brought the team incredible recognition in 2018, when the team, which was ranked 50th in the world, finished 2nd at the Africa Women's Cup of Nations tournament. The team they lost to was Nigeria, which was the 11-time reigning champions, so it was only natural to place 2nd. However, that was only due to losing on penalty kicks in the final.
Her coaching and leadership in bringing more soccer opportunities to the women in South Africa make her one of the finest and most influential women’s soccer coaches today. She was awarded the Gold class Order of Ikhamanga (OIG) civilian honour for her contributions to South African sports in 2023.
7. Norio Sasaki
In 2008, when Sasaki took over as coach for the Japan women’s national team, he had a lot of work to do. The team at that point wasn’t known for its success, frequently being knocked out of tournaments in the early stages. Morale and performance were low.
Soon after his arrival as coach, the team began to improve. Right away, they reached the semi-final in the 2008 Olympics, which was a first for the club.
Over the next seven years, Sasaki helped lead the team to many other victories, proving that with the right guidance and dedication, Japan’s women’s soccer team can achieve great things.
8. Silvia Neid
Neid’s name is one of the most recognisable among famous female coaches for her work as Germany’s head coach.
After gathering experience as a coach and assistant coach for Germany’s youth teams, Neid’s team started off strong, winning the Algarve Cup right away. This set off a series of events where Germany was virtually unbeatable.
Under her guidance, Germany became the first club to win the World Cup twice, in 2007. Furthermore, they excelled in the Euros and the Olympics, making Neid the only coach in history to secure titles in these three major arenas.
9. Lluís Cortés
Before taking over as Barcelona’s head coach, Cortés had had several years of experience as a youth coach and assistant coach for Catalonia, giving him an advantage. He had seen how youths approached the sport, and was invigorated to help the women’s team achieve a love and mastery of and for the game.
During his tenure, he inspired the team to step up their game massively. After only 6 months, Barcelona was making it to the European finals. His leadership boosted Barça to the next level, giving them the strong foundation they needed to continue on even without him.
Cortés resigned from coaching the successful team in 2021, citing too much pressure combined with the stressful conditions associated with COVID operations.
He went on to coach the Ukraine women’s team with the intention of developing them to be ready to host Euro 2025, but Russia’s invasion put a stop to those dreams.
Ready to try again in helping women find opportunities to thrive in athletics, Cortés is now coaching the Saudi Arabian women’s team from a “blank slate.” What achievements can he inspire the Saudi women’s team, which was only just founded in 2022, to reach for? Hopefully, we’ll see them rising in the ranks of international soccer soon.
Hopefully, his commitment to helping more women reach for their dreams of becoming the best soccer players is fruitful.
10. Laura Harvey
Although she never got to play pro herself due to an early injury, Harvey didn’t let that stop her from sticking with the sport and entering the management side. Her success in Arsenal (where she secured six major titles in only three seasons) made her an attractive prospect for Seattle Reign, who were looking for a coach for the first-ever NWSL season.
Under her coaching, the team has netted several major titles. Although they have yet to win it all and get the NWSL Championship, they should be due for it in the next few seasons.
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