The most successful World Cup managers ever

Deschamps is on the brink of history
Deschamps is on the brink of history / ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT/GettyImages
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Behind every World Cup winning team there is a master tactician pulling the strings and plotting every move.

Some managers have pulled off shocks against the odds over the years at FIFA's global showpiece, while others have gathered stars and simply let them play their way to global glory.

There are a whole myriad of factors that can affect a manager's performance; from picking the squad to deciding what tactics to use, the pressure that comes with managing at a World Cup is immense.

Here are the coaches who have fared the best in men's World Cup history.


Has a manager won two World Cups?

TOPSHOT-WORLD CUP-1938-ITALY-TEAM-CUP
The Italy team of 1938 / STAFF/GettyImages

Vittorio Pozzo is the only manager in men's World Cup history to win the World Cup twice. The Italian led the Azzurri to consecutive victories in 1934 and 1938, though his legacy is somewhat tainted by his association with fascism.

After Italy's Roman salute was booed by the French crowd, some of whom were fleeing refugees who had escaped Benito Mussolini's fascist regime, Pozzo ordered his players to make the gesture again.

Pozzo's 1934 team was led by goalscorers Angelo Schiavio, Raimundo Orsi, Giovanni Ferrari and Giuseppe Meazza before the Azzurri retained that title in 1938.

Four managers have won the competition once and been beaten finalists on another occasion. Helmut Schon and West Germany were beaten by England in 1966 but later won in 1974. Compatriot Franz Beckenbauer won in 1990 after finishing second in 1986. Carlos Bilardo and Mario Zagallo are the other managers to have achieved the feat.


World Cup winners as player and manager

Three people have won the men's World Cup separately as a player and manager.

Mario Zagallo was the first to achieve the feat. Having tasted success twice with the Selecao in 1958 and 1962 as an inside forward, Zagallo led the iconic 1970 side to glory in Mexico. He later coached their 1974 and 1998 campaigns too.

The similarly legendary Franz Beckenbauer was also just as adept to sideline tactics as he was playing in Germany's defence. He led West Germany to the 1974 final as captain where they would beat the Netherlands 2-1 despite conceding a penalty in the opening minutes of the game.

Beckenbauer was then in the dugout in 1990 as West Germany beat Argentina 1-0 thanks to Andreas Brehme's penalty.

Didier Deschamps became the third and most recent person to achieve the feat when France triumphed under his guidance in Russia in 2018.

Deschamps had previously captained Les Bleus in the 1998 success which culminated in a 3-0 victory in the final before he led the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Paul Pogba to glory in 2018.


Every World Cup winning manager

Every manager to have won the men's World Cup has shared the team's nationality.

  • 1930 - Alberto Suppici (Uruguay)
  • 1934 - Vittorio Pozzo (Italy)
  • 1938 - Vittorio Pozzo (Italy)
  • 1950 - Juan Lopez Fontana (Uruguay)
  • 1954 - Sepp Herberger (West Germany)
  • 1958 - Vicente Feola (Brazil)
  • 1962 - Aymore Moreira (Brazil)
  • 1966 - Alf Ramsey (England)
  • 1970 - Mario Zagallo (Brazil)
  • 1974 - Helmut Schon (West Germany)
  • 1978 - Cesar Luis Menotti (Argentina)
  • 1982 - Enzo Bearzot (Italy)
  • 1986 - Carlos Bilardo (Argentina)
  • 1990 - Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany)
  • 1994 - Carlos Alberto Parreira (Brazil)
  • 1998 - Aime Jacquet (France)
  • 2002 - Luiz Felipe Scolari (Brazil)
  • 2006 - Marcello Lipp (Italy)
  • 2010 - Vicente del Bosque (Spain)
  • 2014 - Joachim Low (Germany)
  • 2018 - Didier Deschamps (France)