Sarina Wiegman not for sale at any price, FA chief says of England coach

Sarina Wiegman is not for sale at any price, the Football Association’s chief executive, Mark Bullingham, has said, with praise flooding in for the England head coach as she prepares for her fifth major-tournament final in a row.

The Dutchwoman, whose England side will try to defend their European title when they meet the world champions, Spain, in Basel on Sunday, is under contract until after the 2027 Women’s World Cup. She won the 2017 Euros with her homeland and led the Netherlands to the 2019 World Cup final, before takling charge of the Lionesses. On Thursday, Bullingham said the FA would not entertain any approaches for her services.

“She has been incredible and her record of managing in five tournaments and reaching five finals is phenomenal,” he said at England’s hotel base in Zurich. “I don’t believe anyone has been anywhere near that in the past and I think it will be really hard to do that in the future.

“Her connection with everyone is so special. Every single individual member of staff coming into this camp felt valued by her – everyone’s in it together. She’s really helped build a very, very strong culture, not just amongst players but the whole support team.”

Asked how hard it would be to keep Wiegman, Bullingham replied: “Not hard at all. We are committed to her until 2027 and she is committed to us.” He said Wiegman was “not for sale” and, asked whether that was the case at any price, he replied: “No price at all. She’s just a very special coach. She’s performed so well at the highest level, keeping that calm composure, keeping the connection with the players and managing the games really well.

View image in fullscreen Sarina Wiegman poses with the trophy after England won the Women's Euro 2022 final against Germany. Photograph: Leila Coker/AP

“She is just a cool head in the way she transmits that on to the pitch. She looks like the coolest person in the stadium and I have no doubts that helps in critical moments … We are lucky to have her.”

Bullingham was also asked whether Wiegman could be under consideration to succeed Thomas Tuchel in the men’s England job. “My answer is the same now as it was in 2023,” he said. “The starting point is it is almost disrespectful to assume the men’s job is more senior to the women’s. That is not the way we view it. I said two years ago Sarina could do ‘any job in football’. She is an amazing talent.”

Bullingham was speaking for the first time since the England defender Jess Carter revealed she had received racist abuse on social media during Euro 2025. It is not the first time racism has been directed towards England players in relation to a major tournament, with Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka sent racial abuse in the wake of England’s Euro 2020 final loss against Italy.

Bullingham appeared unhappy with a lack of progress from large social media companies in tackling the issue, saying: “We did think things would improve and we lobbied very hard together with Kick It Out and other representatives in football to make sure the Online [Safety] Act came through.

“I think now it’s incumbent on Ofcom to make sure they really do bring those responsible for running social media platforms to account and I haven’t seen huge progress in the last couple of years. We would like to see it now.

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View image in fullscreen Jess Carter waves after England’s win against Italy in their Women’s Euro 2025 semi-final. She had received online racist abuse earlier in the tournament. Photograph: Priscila Bütler/SPP/Shutterstock

“All social media platforms could be a lot better. There has been a lot of focus on taking down content and I think they could be better at taking down content but, more importantly, they could be much better at preventing it as well and then aiding prosecution when it happens.”

Asked whether the FA would be prepared to boycott social media platforms if the abuse continued, Bullingham said: “We did that in the past; we had a day when we boycotted for a day. I think we’ll look at any tool within our disposal, to make a difference. I think what you’ve got now, that’s different to before, is you’ve got the Online Safety Act. We’re very keen to see how Ofcom starts implementing measures to bring personal accountability.”

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