It might be a new year but that isn’t stopping Desiree Ellis from being at the top of her game! The Banyana Banyana mentor was in 7th place on the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) rankings for Women’s World Best National Coach.
Ellis’s success had been widely documented as she and the national team made their mark in a year that was dubbed ‘2020-she’.
From their historic performance at the Women’s World Cup, where the 60-year-old managed to guide the team the knockouts of the soccer showpiece for the first time, to successfully booking their place at this year’s Women’s African Cup of Nations (WAFCON) where they were will be looking to successfully defend their title.
Of course not forgetting Ellis’ success of winning the CAF Women’s Coach of the Year award for a whopping fourth time.
Another big year looms for Ellis and her troops who will be keen to build on their progress made in this the previous year. They will face Tanzania in their Olympic qualifier in February 2024 where they will hope to book their ticket to Paris having missed out on the 2020 edition.
Meanwhile, it was Sarina Wiegman who topped the overall IFFHS coach rankings. She and her England team made history at the World Cup becoming the first men’s or women’s side to reach a final since 1966. This isn’t the first time Wiegman has won the award, she also grabbed top honours when she was head coach of the Netherlands in 2020.
Former Spain national team coach is in second place after he led the team to their first-ever World Cup title in August last year. Sweden coach Peter Gerhardsson occupies third place while Australia coach Tony Gustavsson and France mentor Herve’ Renard are both tied for fourth.
Gustavsson famously managed to get co-host Australia to the semi-finals of the competition last year, which was the team’s best finish in the tournament. Reynald Pedras also finds himself on the list in ninth place having taken Morocco, who played in their first-ever World Cup to the last 16.
The IFFHS Rankings for Women’s World Best National Coach Rankings 2023
1. Sarina Wiegman (England) 156
2. Jorge Vilda (Spain) 152
3. Peter Gerhardsson (Sweden) 35
4. Tony Gustavsson (Australia) 28
4. Herve Renard (France) 28
6. Futoshi Ikeda (Japan) 15
7. Desiree Ellis (South Africa) 12
8. Irene Fuhrmann (Austria) 11
9. Reynald Pedras (Morocco) 9
10. Nelson Abadia (Colombia) 6
Photo caption: It might be a new year but that isn’t stopping Desiree Ellis from being at the top of her game! The Banyana Banyana mentor was in 7th place on the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) rankings for Women’s World Best National Coach. Photo: Banyana Banyana on X
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