Roy Hodgson

Lore & Background

Hodgson has managed 22 different teams in eight countries, beginning in Sweden with Halmstad in 1976. He guided the Switzerland national team to the last 16 of the 1994 World Cup and qualification for Euro 1996. From 2006 to 2007, he managed the Finland national team, guiding them to their highest-ever FIFA ranking of 33rd place. He managed the England national team from May 2012 to June 2016. Other clubs he has managed include Inter Milan, Blackburn Rovers, Malmö, Grasshoppers, Copenhagen, Udinese, Fulham, Liverpool, West Bromwich Albion, Watford, and Crystal Palace. He is one of only five managers to have managed 1,000 or more club games and 100 or more national team games. He speaks five languages.

In Their Own Story

The floodlights at the Boleyn Ground hummed their low, electric note as the away support swelled in the stands. Hodgson stood at the edge of the technical area, hands clasped behind his back, his eyes tracking the ball like a goalkeeper tracking a cross — a habit, perhaps, from the days when it was his hands that had to find it. His back four were set. The midfield two were compact. The striker, isolated up top, nodded to the full-backs: *come and get us.*

The opposition pressed. They pressed harder. They pressed until their legs burned and their shape stretched thin, and then — a loose pass, a moment of hesitation in the centre circle — and the ball was gone, sliding through the channels like a needle through cloth. A sprint. A cross. A header. One-nil.

Hodgson did not celebrate. He simply turned to his assistant, gave a single, slow nod, and walked back to the bench. The away end roared. The home end groaned. And somewhere in the dressing room, a young midfielder would later tell his teammates: *'That's how you win. You don't have to be brilliant. You just have to be there.'*

Full-time. One-nil. The scoreboard told the whole story, and Hodgson's face told the rest.

Reader's Guide

Hodgson started his managerial career in 1976 at Halmstad, winning the league championship in 1976 and 1979. He later managed Malmö to five consecutive league championships. He took over as manager of the Switzerland national team on 26 January 1992. He managed the England national team from May 2012 to June 2016. His playing career included youth football at Crystal Palace and non-league spells with Tonbridge, Gravesend & Northfleet, Maidstone United, Ashford Town, Berea Park (South Africa), and Carshalton Athletic.

Did You Know?

• Hodgson is one of only five managers to have managed 1,000 or more club games and 100 or more national team games.
• He speaks five languages and has worked as a television pundit in several countries.
• His greatest achievement, by his own account, was the 'water-into-wine job' at Halmstad in 1976.
• He is still highly appreciated by Malmö fans, who have unofficially named a section of the Stadion 'Roy's Hörna' (Roy's Corner).