sportbible homepage
sportbible homepage
  • Football
  • Boxing
  • UFC
  • Home
  • Football
    • Premier League
    • Champions League
    • World Cup
    • England
    • Transfer News
    • Manchester United
    • Liverpool
    • Arsenal
    • Real Madrid
    • Barcelona
  • Formula 1
    • Red Bull
    • Ferrari
    • McLaren
    • Mercedes
    • Max Verstappen
    • Lewis Hamilton
    • Lando Norris
    • George Russell
    • Charles Leclerc
  • Boxing
  • UFC
  • More Sport
    • Tennis
    • Golf
    • NBA
    • NFL
    • Darts
    • Athletics
    • Rugby
    • Wrestling
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Snapchat
TikTok
Threads
YouTube
Submit Your Content Here
  • LADbible
  • Tyla
  • GAMINGbible
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • FOODbible
  • UNILAD Tech
The 50 greatest football managers of all time have been named and ranked
Home>Football>Football News
Updated 08:49 25 Aug 2024 GMT+1Published 07:01 24 Aug 2024 GMT+1

The 50 greatest football managers of all time have been named and ranked

The greatest football managers have been ranked including Pep Guardiola, Sir Alex Ferguson and Bill Shankly.

Rory O'Callaghan

Rory O'Callaghan

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover

It's one of the great debates in football that takes place in pubs up and down the country every weekend. Who is the greatest manager that the game has ever seen?

It's a difficult question to answer. Is greatness based on the number of trophies won or the impact they had on the sport? Does the strength of their opposition at the time matter? Do they have to be a revolutionary tactician to be considered?

Several managers in the modern era can make a genuine claim to the title, including Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson and current Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.

But are they greater than the likes of Arrigo Sacchi, Bill Shankly and Johan Cruyff? It's a subjective question that may be impossible to answer, but FourFourTwo have attempted to do just that.

Advert

Last year, they ranked the top 50 managers in the history of football in a list that is likely to spark fierce debate among fans.

Despite leading City to a fourth consecutive Premier League title last season, Guardiola can only make fifth place on the list.

The Catalan has won numerous trophies at the Etihad, including the club's first Champions League title, having also experienced huge success at Bayern Munich and boyhood club Barcelona – whom he guided to two European Cups during his time as head coach.

Fourth on the list is legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly, who transformed the Merseyside club from a struggling side competing in the second tier of English football to one of the strongest teams in Europe.

He won three league titles and the UEFA Cup as manager, laying the foundations for successors Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan to take the club to even greater heights.

Third in the ranking is legendary Dutch player and manager Johan Cruyff, who transformed Barcelona into the hugely successful club it is today.

Cruyff won four league titles and the club's first European Cup by prioritising technique over physicality, introducing a style of play that remains sacred across all age groups at the club.

Second on the list is former Ajax and Netherlands boss Rinus Michels, who paved the way for the likes of Cruyff and Guardiola with his 'total football' style of play.

Sir Alex Ferguson (Image: Getty)
Sir Alex Ferguson (Image: Getty)

He guided Ajax to four Eredivisie titles and a European Cup before taking charge of the Netherlands, who were narrowly beaten by hosts West Germany in the 1974 World Cup final.

And yes, you guessed it, at number one on the list is former United manager Ferguson.

After breaking the Old Firm duopoly with Aberdeen, who went on to win three league titles and the Cup Winners' Cup, Ferguson moved south to England to take charge of United.

After a shaky start, Ferguson managed to win only an FA Cup and Cup Winners' Cup in his first seven years with the Red Devils.

But he would later go on to win 13 Premier League titles, four FA Cups and two Champions Leagues between 1993 and 2013 – transforming United into the biggest club in the world during his time at Old Trafford.

He guided Ajax to four Eredivisie titles and a European Cup before taking charge of the Netherlands, who were narrowly beaten by hosts West Germany in the 1974 World Cup final.

And yes, you guessed it, at number one on the list is former United manager Ferguson.

After breaking the Old Firm duopoly with Aberdeen, who went on to win three league titles and the Cup Winners' Cup, Ferguson moved south to England to take charge of United.

After a shaky start, Ferguson managed to win only an FA Cup and Cup Winners' Cup in his first seven years with the Red Devils.

But he would later go on to win 13 Premier League titles, four FA Cups and two Champions Leagues between 1993 and 2013 – transforming United into the biggest club in the world during his time at Old Trafford.

FourFourTwo's greatest 50 managers

50 to 41: George Graham, Aime Jacquet, Luis Aragones, Bobby Robson, Bill Struth, Tele Santana, Diego Simeone, Albert Batteux, Rafael Benitez, Jill Ellis

40 to 31: Luiz Felipe Scolari, Udo Lattek, Guus Hiddink, Zinedine Zidane, Bill Nicholson, Victor Maslov, Kenny Dalglish, Jupp Heynckes, Helmut Schon

30 to 21: Jock Stein, Jurgen Klopp, Jose Villalonga, Mario Zagallo, Alf Ramsey, Herbert Chapman, Fabio Capello, Arsene Wenger, Bob Paisley, Bela Guttmann

20 to 11: Louis van Gaal, Nereo Rocco, Ottmar Hitzfeld, Carlo Ancelotti, Miguel Munoz, Vicente del Bosque, Giovanni Trapattoni, Marcelo Lippi, Jose Mourinho, Brian Clough

10 to 1: Valeriy Lobanovskyi, Ernst Happel, Helenio Herrera, Matt Busby, Arrigo Sacchi, Pep Guardiola, Bill Shankly, Johan Cruyff, Rinus Michels, Alex Ferguson

Featured Image Credit: Getty

Topics: Football, Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp, Arsene Wenger

Rory O'Callaghan
Rory O'Callaghan

Rory O'Callaghan is Editorial Lead at SPORTbible. He has previously worked for Sky Sports News, MailOnline and Reach covering football, cricket, boxing and MMA.

X

@rory_ocallaghan

Recommended reads

'I’ll smash up my next few opponents': Daniel Dubois talks Fury vs Joshua, Jake Paul crossover and avenging Usyk defeatsBrooks Running'I don't want to be missing anymore' - Jamie Vardy drops retirement hint as he talks Netflix documentaryNetflix / Untold UK: Jamie VardyFormer Man Utd No.2 suggests only reason Michael Carrick would not get the full-time jobGetty ImagesVinnie Jones ‘would love’ for rags to riches life story to be made into movie as he talks Netflix documentaryNetflix

Advert

Choose your content:

an hour ago
3 hours ago
4 hours ago
  • Sky Sports
    an hour ago

    Premier League release statement confirming why West Ham goal was disallowed vs Arsenal

    Premier League have released a statement confirming why the West Ham goal against Arsenal was disallowed.

    Football
  • Getty Images
    an hour ago

    Man Utd fans spot transfer leak at Old Trafford

    Fans of Manchester United have spotted a transfer leak at Old Trafford.

    Football
  • Getty Images
    3 hours ago

    Unthinkable manager opens door to Real Madrid switch in move that would rock the Bernabeu

    A former Real Madrid manager would love to make a return to the Bernabeu that would rock the club.

    Football
  • Getty/FootyHeadlines
    4 hours ago

    Newcastle United home shirt for 26/27 leaked and fans call it the worst kit of all-time

    It's safe to say that fans aren't impressed with the Magpies' new home kit.

    Football
  • People are raving about ‘delicious’ chocolate shake that ‘keeps them full until lunch’
  • Second most successful manager of all time retires, only Sir Alex Ferguson has won more
  • Premier League fans in fierce debate over who makes 'Mount Rushmore' of legendary managers
  • Pep Guardiola beaten by two former Man Utd managers on all-time list of longest Champions League unbeaten runs