The FA Cup is an association football competition contested between English clubs since 1872 and is the oldest football competition in the world. [1] Winning the competition was seen as an equal achievement to winning the league championship, [2] but the growing importance of the Premier League and UEFA Champions League has seen its importance diminish. [3] The role of the manager is to select the squad during the league season, develop the tactics of the team and manage potential issues within the squad. Due to the prestige of winning the FA Cup, the pressures on managers to succeed can be great. [4]
Eighteen men have won the tournament both as a player and as a manager: John Cameron as player-manager in 1901, Peter McWilliam, Billy Walker, Jimmy Seed, Matt Busby, Stan Seymour, Joe Smith, Bill Shankly, Joe Mercer, Don Revie, Bob Stokoe, Kenny Dalglish, Bobby Gould, Terry Venables, George Graham, Gianluca Vialli, Roberto Di Matteo and Mikel Arteta. Cameron and Dalglish are the only two people who have guided their clubs to the title as player-managers, in 1901 and 1986 respectively. Two managers have won the title with multiple sides: Billy Walker won as manager of Sheffield Wednesday in 1935 and Nottingham Forest in 1959, and Herbert Chapman won as manager of Huddersfield Town in 1922 and Arsenal in 1930. James Fielding and Jarvis Kenrick have both won the most consecutive finals with three each, Kenrick with Wanderers in 1876, 1877 and 1878, and Fielding with Blackburn Rovers in 1884, 1885 and 1886. [5] Mercer was the first person to win the FA Cup as a captain and a manager; captaining Arsenal to victory in 1950, and managing Manchester City to a victory in 1969. [6]
English managers have won the competition the most, with 76 wins by 50 different managers. Scottish managers are next with 32 wins by 17 different managers, and French managers are third with eight wins by two managers. Harry Redknapp was the last English manager to win the FA Cup, when he led Portsmouth to victory in the 2008 final. [7] Ruud Gullit became the first manager from outside the British Isles to win the FA Cup when he guided Chelsea to victory in the 1997 final. [8]
Rank | Manager | Nationality | Wins | Winning Years | Club(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Arsène Wenger | France | 7 | 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2014, 2015, 2017 | Arsenal |
2 | George Ramsay | Scotland | 6 | 1887, 1895, 1897, 1905, 1913, 1920 | Aston Villa |
3 | Alex Ferguson | Scotland | 5 | 1990, 1994, 1996, 1999, 2004 | Manchester United |
4 | John Nicholson | England | 4 | 1899, 1902, 1915, 1925 | Sheffield United |
5 | James Fielding | Unknown | 3 | 1884, 1885, 1886 | Blackburn Rovers |
Charles Foweraker | England | 1923, 1926, 1929 | Bolton Wanderers | ||
Bill Nicholson | England | 1961, 1962, 1967 | Tottenham Hotspur | ||
8 | Thomas Mitchell | Scotland | 2 | 1890, 1891 | Blackburn Rovers |
Jack Addenbrooke | England | 1893, 1908 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | ||
Arthur Dickinson | England | 1896, 1907 | The Wednesday | ||
Harry Spencer Hamer | England | 1900, 1903 | Bury | ||
Frank Watt | Scotland | 1910, 1924 | Newcastle United | ||
Herbert Chapman | England | 1922, 1930 | Huddersfield Town, Arsenal | ||
Billy Walker | England | 1935, 1959 | Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest | ||
Matt Busby | Scotland | 1948, 1963 | Manchester United | ||
Stan Cullis | England | 1949, 1960 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | ||
Stan Seymour | England | 1951, 1952 | Newcastle United | ||
Bill Shankly | Scotland | 1965, 1974 | Liverpool | ||
John Lyall | England | 1975, 1980 | West Ham United | ||
Keith Burkinshaw | England | 1981, 1982 | Tottenham Hotspur | ||
Ron Atkinson | England | 1983, 1985 | Manchester United | ||
Kenny Dalglish | Scotland | 1986, 1989 | Liverpool | ||
Pep Guardiola | Spain | 2019, 2023 | Manchester City |
Country | Managers | Total |
---|---|---|
England | 50 | 76 |
Scotland | 20 | 32 |
France | 2 | 8 |
Italy | 5 | 5 |
Spain | 4 | 5 |
Netherlands | 3 | 3 |
Northern Ireland | 2 | 2 |
Germany | 1 | 1 |
Portugal | 1 | 1 |
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