There are many incredible managers in world football right now, with both experienced and young managers catching the eye. Pep Guardiola, Carlo Ancelotti and Xabi Alonso are among the best-performing managers around. The 20 best managers on the planet have been ranked based on trophies, success and longevity.
There are many incredible managers in world football at the moment, with some experienced veterans in the game enduring a wonderful 2024, while younger bosses are emerging to stake their claim as the best around. Both the 2023/24 campaign and international summer tournaments have concluded, with some masterminds lifting league titles and domestic cup silverware, enhancing their reputations in the process. But with the 2024/25 season firmly underway, there is plenty of time for coaches to stake a claim that they are deserving of a higher spot among other leading tacticians.
With all that said, below is a list of the 20 best managers in football currently, and the following factors have been taken into consideration when trying to order them. Trophies. Recent success (Honours won).
Longevity. Performance compared to expectations. International managers and out of work bosses are ranked lower due to a lack of recent games.
20 Best Managers in World Football (2024) Rank Manager Team 1 Pep Guardiola Manchester City 2 Carlo Ancelotti Real Madrid 3 Simone Inzaghi Inter Milan 4 Jurgen Klopp None 5 Xabi Alonso Bayer Leverkusen 6 Mikel Arteta Arsenal 7 Diego Simeone Atletico Madrid 8 Unai Emery Aston Villa 9 Luis Enrique Paris Saint-Germain 10 Lionel Scaloni Argentina 11 Didier Deschamps France 12 Thomas Tuchel None 13 Julian Nagelsmann Germany 14 Luciano Spalletti Italy 15 Hansi Flick Barcelona 16 Massimiliano Allegri None 17 Zinedine Zidane None 18 Thiago Motta Juventus 19 Luis de la Fuente Spain 20 Edin Terzic None 20 Edin Terzic Edin Terzic is a manager who gets very little praise in Europe despite the solid job he did at Signal Iduna Park. Borussia Dortmund reached their first European final since 2013 and came within 90 minutes of winning a second Champions League, only to be foiled by Real Madrid. Their Bundesliga form in the 2023/24 season works against the German-born boss, though, as BVB could only muster a fifth-place finish, dropping behind RB Leipzig and Stuttgart in the division.
The top five teams in the Bundesliga all qualified for this season's Champions League, so Dortmund are in it again - but Terzic isn't around to guide them again, having stepped down earlier this summer. 19 Luis de la Fuente After working his way up through the Spain youth team, Luis de la Fuente was handed a chance with the nation's senior team in 2022 and he hasn't looked back since. Euro 2024 marked a dominant campaign for his team, with the 63-year-old leading them to glory.
Having beat England 2-1 in the Euro 2024 final, Spain became the first team ever to win all seven of their games in the major tournament. After a disappointing few years, the manager has turned things around quickly and Spain dominated their opposition in style during the European Championship. With such a talented, young squad at his disposal, it might be wise to start getting used to the idea of the former left-back and his men dominating international football.
18 Thiago Motta Bologna secured Champions League qualification for the first time in their history due to the fantastic job Thiago Motta did after arriving in 2022. The Italian side were often in the lower half of the top flight but are now be rubbing shoulders with Europe's elite in the newly formatted competition in 2024/25. Motta's revolutionary 2-7-2 formation transformed the way the team played and improved results followed.
It wasn't long before the 42-year-old caught the attention of Juventus and he made the switch to the Old Lady this summer. Now in charge of one of Serie A's biggest clubs, the pressure is on for Motta to return the team to its former glory, but if anyone can do it, it's him. 17 Zinedine Zidane It may be expected that the man to have won three consecutive Champions League trophies would be significantly higher on this list.
But the fact Zinedine Zidane hasn't been seen in a dugout since he departed Real Madrid in 2021 works against him here. The Frenchman is still a highly sought-after boss, though, with links to both Bayern Munich and Manchester United recently reflecting his pedigree. Being one of the greatest players of all time is likely to work in the Frenchman's favour as no player would go against what the iconic figure tells them to do.
That respect can go a long way in the modern game, where player power is an increasing problem. Zidane is a natural winner as success has followed him around, whether he's on the pitch or on the sidelines. 16 Massimiliano Allegri Financial issues have plagued the past few seasons at Juventus, but Allegri at least managed to steer the ship back into the Champions League after an absence from the competition.
Following a long period of dominance in Italian football, Juve have failed to win the league since 2020. Allegri returned to the club in 2021 after having an incredibly successful first stint in Turin between 2014 and 2019. Despite winning the Coppa Italia in 2024, the Italian was then sacked for his antics during the cup final .
Despite that, his trophy collection means that it should not be long until someone registers an interest in his services. 15 Hansi Flick While his reputation took a hit after an ill-fated spell in charge of the Germany national team, Hansi Flick has reminded the world just how good a manager he is now that he's at Barcelona . The former Bayern Munich coach has quickly transformed the Catalan giants into a dominant force.
They've won 100% of their games so far in the 2024/25 campaign and look poised to wrestle control of La Liga back from Real Madrid. While Lamine Yamal has been sensational this season, a lot of the credit has to go to the manager as well. The last few years have been disappointing for Barcelona and the club have been through turmoil, but it looks like Flick could be the man to finally steer them in the right direction.
14 Luciano Spalletti Italy have found qualification for international tournaments to be hard to come by at times in their recent history, but Luciano Spalletti has managed to turn the tide a little, guiding them to Euro 2024. It was ultimately a disappointing outing, though, with the nation crashing out in the round of 16 following a 2-0 loss to Switzerland. The former Inter Milan boss took charge of the national side in 2023 after leaving Napoli.
During his time in Naples, Spalletti proved he was capable of getting his team to work hard as he guided the club to a first Serie A title in over 30 years. This is the biggest triumph of his managerial career to date. That could change, though, if he manages to lead his nation to glory in a major tournament somewhere down the line.
13 Julian Nagelsmann Despite failing to win Euro 2024 while being the hosts and one of the favourites, big things are still expected from Germany in the future and that's largely due to the revolutionary ideas of Julian Nagelsmann. Eyebrows were raised when Bayern Munich dismissed the German, as the 36-year-old was doing a commendable job at the time. Nagelsmann has since been hired by the national team and has won eight of his first 15 games in charge of Die Mannschaft, including an impressive dominant victory over France.
He has some of the most exciting young players in the world at his disposal, such as Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala, and the young boss' stock will rise significantly if he helps his country to another major honour. 12 Thomas Tuchel Thomas Tuchel might have left Bayern Munich under a cloud after he was beaten to the Bundesliga title by Bayer Leverkusen, but that has not wrecked his reputation as a top-tier manager. Man United were in talks over potentially appointing him as Erik ten Hag's replacement until the German pulled out of discussions .
Despite his domestic troubles in the hot seat, Tuchel has a solid track record in Europe and guided the Bavarian outfit into the Champions League semi-final. They were eliminated by Real Madrid, but considering their pedigree in the European competition, it's hard to hold that loss against Tuchel. The 50-year-old is unlikely to be short of offers when he is ready to return to the beautiful game, as he's regularly got the best out of players no matter where he goes.
11 Didier Deschamps When adding all of his medals as a player to those in his managerial career, Didier Deschamps must be one of the most successful people in football history. The Frenchman is the definition of a serial winner and proved that at the 2018 World Cup. Some fans have been known to get impatient with the lack of success in recent international tournaments, but the France manager was a penalty shootout away from retaining the biggest prize in world football in 2022.
They did underperform at Euro 2024, but still made it to the semi-finals. No matter what, France always stand a chance in major tournaments because they have one of the best managers working in international football right now. The World Cup is the most prestigious tournament in football history but who are the top seven most successful managers in the competition's history 10 Lionel Scaloni Everyone knows the biggest achievement of Lionel Scaloni's stint as a football manager.
He will forever be known as the man who helped Lionel Messi complete football by winning the World Cup in 2022. Of course, that doesn't do enough justice to the overall work he's done to transform the nation from almost a sleeping giant for many years into a side competing for all the major honours on offer. The 45-year-old was also at the helm when Argentina defeated Brazil in the Copa America 2021 final and when they beat Colombia in the Copa America 2024 final.
He's been in the job since 2018, taking the role before he hit the age of 40. To have achieved the success he has as such a young manager is worthy of a relatively high place on this list. 9 Luis Enrique Luis Enrique's managerial skills could soon be put to the test as the Spaniard has been tasked with steering Paris Saint-Germain through the post-Kylian Mbappe era.
The Frenchman has now joined Real Madrid and Enrique has to find a way to succeed without him in the team. However, his record in management speaks for itself and the ex-Barcelona boss is one of the few men on this list who will feel extremely confident he can make a success of the situation. He's already won a domestic trophy and a Ligue 1 title in his first year occupying the dugout.
Having overseen the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez at Barca, Enrique has no problem working with big-name players and often gets the best out of them. 8 Unai Emery Before the 2023/24 campaign kicked off, very few would have given Aston Villa a chance of securing a Champions League spot, but Unai Emery ensured that the West Midlands outfit finished in the top four. Comparing the state of the Villans now to when the ex-Arsenal boss took over from Steven Gerrard shows just how remarkable this achievement is.
He has been highly regarded as a brilliant tactician after winning multiple European trophies in his career with Sevilla, and Emery nearly added the Europa Conference League to his extensive list of honours before Villa were dismantled by Olympiacos. Nevertheless, he has elevated the likes of John McGinn, Ollie Watkins and Ezri Konsa to heights that previously looked impossible, which proves the Spaniard is a brilliant man-manager and his side are set for a very exciting season in the Champions League. 7 Diego Simeone One of the longest-serving managers in Europe's top five leagues, Diego Simeone has hovered among the best coaches in the world for quite some time.
In the 2023/24 season, Atletico Madrid enjoyed another successful term as they qualified for the Champions League yet again. The disappointment will come with the lack of silverware collected as the Spanish club were knocked out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals despite being drawn on the favourable side of the brackets. Simeone is perhaps the best manager around when it comes to taking a pragmatic and solid approach, which is why he's paid mega-money .
With the addition of the likes of Conor Gallagher and Julian Alvarez, this season is shaping up to be a promising one. 6 Mikel Arteta Arsenal fans would back their boss as the best on the planet as Mikel Arteta has transformed the club's fortunes in recent years and had them in contention to win the Premier League title for a second successive season. If the North London side had become champions of England for the first time in 20 years, the Spaniard would have been praised as a hero.
However, all five of the managers above him on this list won a trophy in the 2023/24 season. The Gunners were knocked out of both domestic competitions in the early stages and exited the Champions League in the quarter-finals. Arteta has done a phenomenal job to have the supporters of the club dreaming of success in the near future after enduring a disappointing spell before he arrived.
GIVEMESPORT takes a look at the most exciting young managers in the world, featuring the likes of Mikel Arteta, Xabi Alonso and Julian Nagelsmann. 5 Xabi Alonso The work Xabi Alonso has done during his two seasons at Bayer Leverkusen is incredible. His team went on the longest unbeaten run in Europe's top 10 leagues and knocked Bayern Munich off their Bundesliga perch for the first time in over a decade.
Alonso lifted the German league title and added the 2024 DFB Pokal to Leverkusen's trophy cabinet, but he ultimately came up short in Europe in what was otherwise a tremendous season. Many clubs across the continent have been linked with the best young manager in world football, but the 42-year-old has pledged his future to Bayer Leverkusen, much to the delight of the side that have benefitted greatly from his tactical intelligence. 4 Jurgen Klopp Jurgen Klopp is currently unemployed, having left Liverpool at the end of the 2023/24 season.
However, he will be fondly remembered as one of the best managers in Premier League history after rebuilding the Reds from a mid-table side into regular title challengers. At the start of 2024, it looked like there was a strong possibility that the 56-year-old would be sent off in the greatest way possible. Liverpool were actively competing in four competitions and looked almost unstoppable in the wake of Klopp's announcement.
Unfortunately, the most successful manager the Merseyside club has had in the Premier League era bowed out with only a League Cup triumph in his final campaign. Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola and Sir Alex Ferguson boast some of the best points-per-match averages in Premier League history. 3 Simone Inzaghi To be ranked above the likes of Klopp, Alonso and Arteta in 2024 is an incredible achievement and testament to the work Simone Inzaghi has done at Inter Milan .
The Serie A title returned to the Italian giants after they secured the trophy in the best way possible; against fierce rivals AC Milan at the San Siro. He also came so close to being the first Inter boss to bring the Champions League back to Italy in the 2022/23 season, narrowly losing in the final against Manchester City. Inzaghi could even be in with a chance of making it into the top two if his team continue blowing their Serie A competition away in the second half of 2024.
His genius was on full display as his side held City to a goalless draw at the Etihad this season. 2 Carlo Ancelotti As one of few people to have won the European Cup as both a player and manager, Carlo Ancelotti will leave an ever-lasting legacy. The Italian first dipped his toe in the world of management in 1995 and, almost three decades later, he's still among the best around.
Ancelotti has an aura around him that helps him gain respect from players. Being able to take control of the Real Madrid squad full of superstars and get them working hard for the badge is a difficult task in itself. The 65-year-old has won league titles in four of the top five European leagues - Spain, Germany, Italy, and France - and most recently secured a Spanish league and Champions League double.
His success in the latter means he is unquestionably the greatest manager in the competition's history . 1 Pep Guardiola Pep Guardiola is the best manager in world football and, in truth, has been for many years now. Manchester City won a fourth consecutive Premier League title under the former Barcelona man, and yet 2023/24 still felt like a slightly underwhelming campaign.
Those are the high standards set by the Spanish genius. GIVEMSPORT Key Statistic: Pep Guardiola's Manchester City are the first English side ever to win four consecutive Premier League titles. Having secured the Citizens' first-ever European trophy as part of a historic treble in the 2022/23 season, Guardiola has cemented himself as one of the greatest managers of all time.
There's still plenty of time for the 53-year-old to threaten to overtake the legacy left in the Premier League by Sir Alex Ferguson, which nobody thought possible when the legendary Scot retired in 2013. His 39 career trophies make him the second-most decorated manager in football history ..
