Tournament Guide; Fixtures
32 coaches will be in Brazil, guiding their teams. Many teams have foreign bosses. However, hosts Brazil have local coach in the experienced Luiz Felipe Scolari.
In Part I of coaches' profiles we feature the ones from Group A, B, C and D. Second and finally series will include the next set of 16 managers (Group E, F, G and H).
16 Coaches and their profiles Part 1 - Part 2 is here
Group A - Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon
Brazil
Coach: Luiz Felipe Scolari (Brazil)
Age: 65 (DOB 09.11.1948)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan (BRA, 7 matches)
2006 FIFA World Cup Germany (POR, 7 matches)
FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 (BRA, 5 matches)
Luiz Felipe Scolari has already won one FIFA World CupTM at the helm of Brazil, back in 2002, before taking Portugal to the semi-finals of the 2010 event. Last summer "Big Phil" also guided A Selecao to victory in the FIFA Confederations Cup.
Croatia
Coach: Nico Kovac (Croatia)
Age: 43 years (DOB 15.10.1971)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player
2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan (CRO, 3 matches)
2006 FIFA World Cup Germany (CRO, 3 matches)
As coach - None
Once a midfielder who built a glittering career in Germany with Hertha Berlin, Bayer Leverkusen, Hamburg and Bayern Munich, Nico Kovac played for Croatia in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. He was only appointed as head coach of his national team shortly before their play-off against Iceland.
Mexico
Coach: Miguel Herrera (Mexico)
Age: 46 years (DOB 18.03.1968)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
Former defender Miguel Herrera won 14 caps for Mexico and took part in the Copa America 1993. He was the fourth coach appointed during Mexico's troubled World Cup qualifying campaign after Jose Manuel de la Torre, Luis Fernando Tena and Victor Manuel Vucetich.
Cameroon
Coach: Volker Finke (Germany)
Age: 66 years (DOB 24.03.1948)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
Volker Finke managed Freiburg for 16 years before taking over at Japanese club Urawa Red Diamonds and subsequently Cologne. He has been in charge of Cameroon since May 2013 and is the second German to coach the Indomitable Lions at the World Cup, following Winfried Schaefer in 2002.
Group B: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia
Spain
Coach: Vicente del Bosque (Spain)
Age: 63 years (DOB 23.12.1950)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
FIFA Club World Championship Brazil 2000 (Real Madrid, ESP, 4 matches)
FIFA Confederations Cup South Africa 2009 (ESP, 5 matches)
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (ESP, 7 matches)
FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 (ESP, 5 matches)
Winner of 16 league and cup titles as a player and then head coach of Real Madrid, Vicente del Bosque steered Spain to victory at the 2010 World Cup and UEFA EURO 2012.
Netherlands
Coach: Louis Van Gaal (Netherlands)
Age: 62 years (DOB 08.08.1951)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
FIFA World Youth Championship Argentina 2001 (NED, 5 matches)
At club level Louis van Gaal has notably coached Ajax, AZ Alkmaar, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, winning the Dutch, Spanish and German league titles. His managerial resume also includes a UEFA Champions League trophy with Ajax in 1995. The Dutch strategist is contesting his first global showpiece, having been reappointed as head coach of the Netherlands in 2012, a decade after failing to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.
Chile
Coach: Jorge Sampaoli (Argentina)
Age: 54 years (DOB 13.03.1960)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
After clinching three Chilean league titles and one Copa Sudamericana in two years with Universidad de Chile, Jorge Sampaoli was named head coach of La Roja in December 2012.
Australia
Coach: Ange Postecoglou (Australia)
Age: 48 years (DOB 27.08.1965)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - FIFA World Youth Championship USSR 1985 (3 matches)
As coach - FIFA Club World Championship Brazil 2000 (South Melbourne, AUS; 3 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship Argentina 2001 (AUS, 4 matches)
FIFA U-17 World Championship Trinidad & Tobago 2001 (AUS, 4 matches)
FIFA U-17 World Championship Finland 2003 (AUS, 3 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship UAE 2003 (AUS, 4 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship Netherlands 2005 (AUS, 3 matches)
FIFA U-17 World Championship Peru 2005 (AUS, 3 matches)
Formerly a defender, Ange Postecoglou won several caps with the senior Australia national team as well as the U-20 side (with whom he took part in the FIFA U-20 World Cup 1985). He has overseen Australian youth teams at six World Cups: three at U-17 level and three at U-20 level.
Group C: Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast, Japan
Colombia
Coach: Jose Pekerman (Argentina)
Age: 64 years (DOB 03.09.1949)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
FIFA World Youth Championship Qatar 1995 (ARG, 6 matches)
FIFA U-17 World Championship Ecuador 1995 (ARG, 6 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship Malaysia 1997 (ARG, 7 matches)
FIFA U-17 World Championship Egypt 1997 (ARG, 4 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship Nigeria 1999 (ARG, 4 matches)
FIFA World Youth Championship Argentina 2001 (ARG, 7 matches)
FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005 (ARG, 5 matches)
2006 FIFA World Cup Germany (ARG, 5 matches)
Jose Pekerman closed out his playing career in Colombia and is contesting his second World Cup as a coach, having led his home nation Argentina in the 2006 edition. Pekerman has managed Argentinian national youth sides at six World Cups (two U-17 and four U-20), winning three global titles at U-20 level.
Greece
Coach: Fernando Santos (Portugal)
Age: 59 years (DOB 10.10.1954)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
Prior to being appointed head coach of the Greek national team in July 2010, Fernando Santos honed his managerial skills with clubs in Portugal and Greece.
Ivory Coast
Coach: Sabri Lamouchi (France)
Age: 42 years (DOB 09.11.1971)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
Sabri Lamouchi played in France for Auxerre, Monaco and Marseille, as well as in Italy for Parma, Inter and Genoa, before ending his playing career in Qatar. This is the Frenchman's first major assignment as a coach.
Japan
Coach: Alberto Zaccheroni (Italy)
Age: 61 years (DOB 01.04.1953)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 (JPN, 3 matches)
Alberto Zaccheroni has coached in Serie A with Udinese, AC Milan (winning one Scudetto), Lazio, Inter, Torino and Juventus. After taking charge of Japan in the summer of 2010, the Italian supremo steered the Samurai Blue to the AFC Asian Cup title in 2011.
Group D: Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy
Uruguay
Coach: Oscar Tabarez (Uruguay)
Age: 67 years (DOB 03.03.1947)
As player - None
As coach
1990 FIFA World Cup Italy (URU, 4 matches)
2010 FIFA World Cup South AfricaTM (URU, 7 matches)
Olympic Football Tournament London 2012 (URU, 3 matches)
FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 (URU, 5 matches)
Oscar Tabarez has managed clubs in Uruguay, Argentina, Italy, Spain and Colombia. As head coach of the Uruguayan national team he won the Copa America in 2011. Tabarez is participating in his third World Cup and also his third as coach of Uruguay, following on from the 1990 and 2010 editions.
Costa Rica
Coach: Jorge Luis Pinto (Colombia)
Age: 62 years (DOB 02.01.1952)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach - None
As a club coach Jorge Luis Pinto has won league titles in four different countries, namely Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru and Venezuela. He oversaw eight qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup with Colombia, plus another seven ahead of the 2006 finals during a previous stint with the Costa Rican national team.
England
Coach: Roy Hodgson (England)
Age: 66 years (DOB 09.08.1947)
As player - None
As coach
1994 FIFA World Cup USA (SUI, 4 matches)
England are the fourth national team that Roy Hodgson has managed after Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and Finland, and the second that he has taken to the World Cup, following his qualification with Switzerland in 1994.
Italy
Coach: Cesare Prandelli (Italy)
Age: 56 years (DOB 19.08.1957)
FIFA Competitions' Experience
As player - None
As coach
FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 (ITA, 5 matches)
As a player Cesare Prandelli won three Serie A titles, one Italian cup and two European cup competitions with Juventus. Since taking charge of Italy in August 2010, Prandelli led Gli Azzurri to the runners-up spot at the UEFA European Championship 2012.
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