Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham said there are “performance conditions” connected to Thomas Tuchel staying on as England head coach beyond the FIFA World Cup, but did not disclose if there was a break clause at the end of this summer’s finals.
Bullingham also said that Tuchel’s extension was not in response to Ruben Amorim’s sacking at Manchester United amid speculation he would be a top contender for the role.
The FA announced on Thursday the German had agreed an extension through to the end of the European Championship on home soil in 2028.
There has been criticism of the decision to renew before the World Cup, rather than letting the tournament play out, but Bullingham said it was not “realistic” to let the contract expire.
Asked what would happen if England had a disastrous World Cup, Bullingham told reporters at the UEFA Congress in Brussels: “We’ve appointed him with a view to him being our coach for 2028. Every single person has performance conditions in their contract, you wouldn’t expect me to go into those.
“I’ve got them as well, but we’re really clear that we want him coaching us in 2028.”
Bullingham said he would “not go into” whether the new agreement contained a post-World Cup break clause.
Asked why the FA had not waited and made a decision after the World Cup, Bullingham replied: “I just don’t think that’s realistic. When you look at anyone in any business on a fixed-term contract, clearly when you get to the end of that fixed-term contract, they will already be considering their future.
“From our point of view, we felt like we had a world-class coach doing a really good job for us and we wanted him to carry on.”
Bullingham said the move would end speculation before and during the tournament concerning Tuchel’s future.
“Whenever we’ve got any tournament, we want to know where we are a few months ahead,” he said.
“We’ve seen that with [England women’s head coach] Sarina [Wiegman] before and with Gareth [Southgate] previously as well.
“We tend to want to know where we are, to remove that uncertainty when you’re going into a tournament, it gives everyone — the support team and the players — that certainty.”
The move appears to ward off the possibility of Tuchel being snapped up by a big club in the market for a new boss this summer, such as Manchester United.
– Thomas Tuchel signs new England deal through to Euro 2028
– Players’ union to get UEFA ExCo voting rights after 2-year delay
– Ranked: Best and worst manager jobs for clubs and national teams
Sources have told ESPN the FA were keen to ensure Tuchel was not part of what is likely to be a managerial merry-go-round this summer with a host of elite coaches approaching the end of their deals.
However, Bullingham insisted that United’s job availability was not in the FA’s thinking and that discussions around an extension began long before Ruben Amorim’s departure.
“The conversation evolved very naturally after we qualified,” Bullingham said.
“From our point of view, it’s just a really natural evolution. We felt like he was really enjoying the job.
“He’s really enjoyed going to work in international football. The time it allows you between each game to plan, I think he’s really enjoyed that, and just bought into the challenge of that.”
Information from PA and ESPN’s James Olley was used in this report.
