The Football Association (FA) has confirmed that Gareth Southgate wants to remain as England manager regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s Euro 2024 final against Spain, according to ESPN.
Southgate’s current contract expires in December and the 53-year-old has repeatedly insisted he will only consider his position after the tournament.
England were on the verge of being knocked out of the last 16 by Slovakia before Jude Bellingham equalised in the 95th minute, with Southgate even being showered with beer after the team’s group-stage draw with Slovenia.
It was increasingly likely that he would quit the national team given Southgate’s feelings towards him, but England’s dramatic run to the final in Germany could change his mind.
Sources told ESPN that the FA has always wanted Southgate to lead England to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. To do so, he would need to sign a new contract, which will mark 10 years since he took over as England manager from Sam Allardyce in 2016.
The FA were impressed by Southgate’s performance in leading England to their first major final abroad after losing on penalties to Italy at Wembley three years ago and reaching the European Championship final for the second year in a row.
Southgate has achieved more competitive knockout wins than all other England managers combined since 1966, reaching the semi-finals, final, quarter-finals and final on four occasions.
On the eve of the match, FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said: “I think Gareth has done an absolutely incredible job.
“I think he changed the fortunes of our team. You can see it not only off the pitch, but in the culture, and you can see it on the pitch.
“Since 1966, he’s won about half of our knockout games. That’s a metric we actually use, so we value him immensely.”
Southgate is open to a return to club management one day and was one of the options Manchester United considered before deciding to keep Erik ten Hag for next season.
