List of Chelsea F.C. managers

Roberto Di Matteo is the first manager to have won the UEFA Champions League for Chelsea.

The first manager of Chelsea Football Club was John Robertson, appointed player-manager in 1905. The current head coach is Enzo Maresca.

Chelsea have had 32 permanent managers/head coaches (of whom four also served as player-manager), six interim managers and six caretakers. Ron Suart has served as both caretaker and interim manager. José Mourinho has served two different periods as permanent manager, while Guus Hiddink has been interim manager twice. Roberto Di Matteo was first interim manager, but was later appointed permanent manager, while Frank Lampard was first permanent manager, and later interim manager.

Chelsea's first ever manager was Scottish wing-half John Tait Robertson, who continued to play for the club until he resigned a year later. David Calderhead is Chelsea's longest-serving manager, holding the position from 1907 to 1933, spanning 966 matches. Chelsea's shortest reigning permanent manager is Graham Potter, who was in charge for 31 games. Statistically, Chelsea's least successful manager is Frank Lampard during his second stint.

The first manager under whom Chelsea won a major trophy was Ted Drake, who guided the club to the league championship in the 1954–55 season, while Dave Sexton managed the club to their first European honour, a UEFA Cup Winners' Cup triumph in 1971, and Gianluca Vialli guided Chelsea to win the 1998 UEFA Super Cup. Mourinho has won the most domestic titles, and total titles with the club (in fact, all titles won with Mourinho were domestic titles – eight in total), Vialli second most titles with five, whereas Carlo Ancelotti led Chelsea to their first league and FA Cup "Double" in 2010.

Di Matteo led Chelsea to their first UEFA Champions League for Chelsea in 2012. A year after, Rafael Benítez led the club to win the UEFA Europa League, becoming the first club to hold two major European titles simultaneously and one of five clubs, and the first British club, to have won all three of UEFA's major club competitions. In February 2022, Thomas Tuchel led Chelsea to its first FIFA Club World Cup. He is also the coach who have won the most international titles with the club; all three of his titles were international.

List of managers

Statistics correct as of 11 January 2025.

Key

  • Includes competitive matches only.
  • This table of all managers includes performance records and honours.
  • M = matches managed; W = matches won; D = matches drawn; L = matches lost; GF = goals for; GA = goals against; GD = goal difference; Win% = percentage of total matches won.
Picture Name Nationality From To Days M W D L GF GA GD Win% Honours
John Tait Robertson[nb 1][1]  Scotland 1 August 1905 27 November 1906 483 54 33 10 11 126 57 +69 061.11 –
William Lewis[nb 2][1]  England 27 November 1906 1 August 1907 247 27 17 5 5 54 25 +29 062.96 –
David Calderhead[1]  Scotland 1 August 1907 8 May 1933 9,412 966 385 239 342 1,378 1,304 +74 039.86 –
Leslie Knighton[1]  England 8 May 1933 19 April 1939 2,172 269 92 69 108 413 442 −29 034.20 –
Billy Birrell[1]  Scotland 19 April 1939 31 May 1952 4,791 293 97 77 119 416 465 −49 033.11 –
Ted Drake[1]  England 1 June 1952 30 September 1961 3,408 426 156 103 167 774 780 −6 036.62 see below
Tommy Docherty[1]  Scotland 1 October 1961 6 October 1967 2,196 303 142 65 96 527 424 +103 046.86 see below
Ron Suart[nb 3][1]  England 6 October 1967 23 October 1967 17 2 0 1 1 1 8 −7 000.00 –
Dave Sexton[1]  England 23 October 1967 3 October 1974 2,537 371 164 107 100 568 432 +136 044.20 see below
Ron Suart (2)[nb 2][1]  England 3 October 1974 16 April 1975 195 34 8 12 14 38 62 −24 023.53 –
Eddie McCreadie[1]  Scotland 16 April 1975 1 July 1977 807 97 37 33 27 141 123 +18 038.14 –
Ken Shellito[1]  England 7 July 1977 13 December 1978 524 66 15 19 32 77 115 −38 022.73 –
Danny Blanchflower[1]  Northern Ireland 14 December 1978 11 September 1979 271 32 5 8 19 34 68 −34 015.63 –
Geoff Hurst[1]  England 13 September 1979 23 April 1981 588 81 35 19 27 108 89 +19 043.21 –
Bobby Gould[nb 3][1]  England 23 April 1981 28 May 1981 35 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5 000.00 –
John Neal[1]  England 28 May 1981 11 June 1985 1,475 203 84 61 58 326 253 +73 041.38[nb 4] see below
John Hollins[1]  England 11 June 1985 6 March 1988 999 145 56 38 51 199 217 −18 038.62[nb 5] see below
Bobby Campbell[1]  England 6 March 1988 12 May 1991 1,162 165 77 47 41 287 233 +54 046.67[nb 6] see below
Ian Porterfield[1]  Scotland 11 June 1991 15 February 1993 615 90 31 28 31 106 118 −12 034.44[nb 7] –
David Webb[nb 2][1]  England 15 February 1993 11 May 1993 85 13 5 4 4 19 18 +1 038.46 –
Glenn Hoddle[nb 1][1]  England 4 June 1993 10 May 1996 1,071 157 53 54 50 192 183 +9 033.76[nb 8] –
Ruud Gullit[nb 1][1][2]  Netherlands 10 May 1996 12 February 1998 643 83 41 18 24 158 109 +49 049.40[nb 9] see below
Gianluca Vialli[nb 1][1][3]  Italy 12 February 1998 12 September 2000 943 143 76 38 29 224 123 +101 053.15 see below
Graham Rix[nb 3][1][3]  England 13 September 2000 17 September 2000 4 2 1 0 1 1 2 −1 050.00 –
Claudio Ranieri[1][4][5]  Italy 17 September 2000 31 May 2004 1,352 199 107 46 46 358 197 +161 053.77 –
José Mourinho[1][6][7]  Portugal 2 June 2004 19 September 2007 1,204 185 124 40 21 330 119 +211 067.03[nb 10] see below
Avram Grant[1][8][9]  Israel 20 September 2007 24 May 2008 247 54 36 13 5 97 36 +61 066.67[nb 11] –
Luiz Felipe Scolari[1][10][11]  Brazil 1 July 2008 9 February 2009 223 36 20 11 5 66 24 +42 055.56[nb 12] –
Ray Wilkins[nb 3][12][13]  England 9 February 2009 11 February 2009 2 1 1 0 0 3 1 +2 100.00 –
Guus Hiddink[nb 2][1][14]  Netherlands 11 February 2009 30 May 2009 108 22 16 5 1 41 19 +22 072.73 see below
Carlo Ancelotti[1][15][16]  Italy 1 July 2009 22 May 2011 690 109 67 20 22 241 94 +147 061.47[nb 13] see below
André Villas-Boas[1][17]  Portugal 22 June 2011 4 March 2012 256 40 19 11 10 69 43 +26 047.50[nb 14] –
Roberto Di Matteo[1]  Italy 4 March 2012 21 November 2012 262 42 24 9 9 91 56 +35 057.14[nb 15] see below
Rafael Benítez[nb 2][1]  Spain 21 November 2012 27 May 2013 187 48 28 10 10 99 49 +50 058.33 see below
José Mourinho (2)[1]  Portugal 3 June 2013 17 December 2015 927 136 80 29 27 245 121 +124 058.82[nb 16] see below
Steve Holland[nb 3][18]  England 18 December 2015 19 December 2015 1 1 1 0 0 3 1 +2 100.00 –
Guus Hiddink (2)[nb 2][1][14]  Netherlands 19 December 2015 30 June 2016 194 27 10 11 6 52 34 +18 037.04 –
Antonio Conte[1]  Italy 1 July 2016 12 July 2018 741 106 69 17 20 212 102 +110 065.09[nb 17] see below
Maurizio Sarri[1]  Italy 14 July 2018 16 June 2019 337 63 39 13 11 112 58 +54 061.90[nb 18] see below
Frank Lampard[1]  England 4 July 2019 25 January 2021 571 84 44 17 23 163 106 +57 052.38[nb 19] –
Thomas Tuchel[1]  Germany 26 January 2021 7 September 2022 589 100 60 24 16 168 77 +91 060.00[nb 20] see below
Graham Potter[1]  England 8 September 2022 2 April 2023 206 31 12 8 11 33 31 +2 038.71 –
Bruno Saltor[nb 3][1]  Spain 2 April 2023 6 April 2023 4 1 0 1 0 0 0 +0 000.00 –
Frank Lampard (2)[nb 2][1]  England 6 April 2023 30 June 2023 85 11 1 2 8 9 21 −12 009.09 –
Mauricio Pochettino[1]  Argentina 1 July 2023 21 May 2024 325 51 26 11 14 103 74 +29 050.98 –
Enzo Maresca[1]  Italy 1 July 2024 Present 194 31 19 6 6 78 33 +45 061.29 –
Total 1 August 1905 Present 43,385 5,402 2,413 1,359 1,630 8,740 6,951 +1789 044.67 see below

Managers with honours

Name Nationality Tenure Honours
Ted Drake  England 1952–1961 1955 First Division
1955 FA Charity Shield
Tommy Docherty  Scotland 1961–1967 1965 Football League Cup
Dave Sexton  England 1967–1974 1970 FA Cup
1971 European Cup Winners' Cup
John Neal  England 1981–1985 1984 Second Division
John Hollins  England 1985–1988 1986 Full Members Cup
Bobby Campbell  England 1988–1991 1989 Second Division
1990 Full Members Cup
Ruud Gullit  Netherlands 1996–1998 1997 FA Cup
Gianluca Vialli  Italy 1998–2000 1998 Football League Cup
1998 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
1998 UEFA Super Cup
2000 FA Cup
2000 FA Charity Shield
José Mourinho  Portugal 2004–2007
2013–2015		 2005 Football League Cup
2005 Premier League
2005 FA Community Shield
2006 Premier League
2007 Football League Cup
2007 FA Cup
2015 Football League Cup
2015 Premier League
Guus Hiddink  Netherlands 2009
2015–2016 		2009 FA Cup
Carlo Ancelotti  Italy 2009–2011 2009 FA Community Shield
2010 Premier League
2010 FA Cup
Roberto Di Matteo  Italy 2012 2012 FA Cup
2012 UEFA Champions League
Rafael Benítez  Spain 2012–2013 2013 UEFA Europa League
Antonio Conte  Italy 2016–2018 2017 Premier League
2018 FA Cup
Maurizio Sarri  Italy 2018–2019 2019 UEFA Europa League
Thomas Tuchel  Germany 2021–2022 2021 UEFA Champions League
2021 UEFA Super Cup
2021 FIFA Club World Cup

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Player-manager
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Interim manager
  3. ^ a b c d e f Caretaker
  4. ^ One drawn League Cup game won on penalties
  5. ^ One drawn Full Members Cup game won on penalties
  6. ^ One drawn Full Members Cup game lost on penalties
  7. ^ One drawn Full Members Cup game won on penalties
  8. ^ One drawn FA Cup game lost on penalties; one drawn FA Cup game won on penalties
  9. ^ One drawn Charity Shield game lost on penalties; two drawn League Cup games won on penalties
  10. ^ One drawn League Cup game lost on penalties; one drawn Champions League game lost on penalties; one drawn Community Shield game lost on penalties
  11. ^ One drawn UEFA Champions League final lost on penalties
  12. ^ One drawn League Cup game lost on penalties
  13. ^ One drawn Community Shield game won on penalties; one drawn League Cup game lost on penalties; one drawn FA Cup game lost on penalties
  14. ^ One drawn League Cup game won on penalties
  15. ^ One drawn UEFA Champions League final won on penalties
  16. ^ One drawn UEFA Super Cup game lost on penalties; one drawn League Cup game lost on penalties
  17. ^ One drawn Community Shield game lost on penalties; one drawn FA Cup game won on penalties
  18. ^ One drawn League Cup game won on penalties; one drawn League Cup Final lost on penalties; one drawn UEFA Europa League game won on penalties
  19. ^ One drawn UEFA Super Cup game lost on penalties; one drawn League Cup game lost on penalties
  20. ^ One drawn UEFA Super Cup game won on penalties; two drawn League Cup games won on penalties; one drawn League Cup final lost on penalties; one drawn FA Cup final lost on penalties.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar "Chelsea Managers". Bounder Friardale.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  2. ^ "Gullit 'astounded' by Chelsea sacking". The Independent. 13 February 1998.
  3. ^ a b "Vialli sacked as Chelsea boss". BBC Sport. 12 September 2000. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Chelsea set to appoint Ranieri". The Guardian. 15 September 2000.
  5. ^ "Chelsea sack Ranieri". BBC Sport. 31 May 2004.
  6. ^ "Chelsea appoint Mourinho". BBC Sport. 2 June 2004.
  7. ^ "Mourinho severs his ties with Chelsea". The Guardian. 20 September 2007.
  8. ^ "Mourinho makes shock Chelsea exit". BBC Sport. 20 September 2007.
  9. ^ "Grant sacked as Chelsea manager". BBC Sport. 24 May 2008.
  10. ^ "Scolari named as Chelsea manager". BBC Sport. 11 June 2008.
  11. ^ "Scolari sacked as Chelsea manager". BBC Sport. 9 February 2009.
  12. ^ "Don't write off Chelsea - Wilkins". BBC Sport. 14 February 2009.
  13. ^ "Ray Wilkins's managerial career". Soccerbase. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Guus Hiddink's managerial career". Soccerbase. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  15. ^ "Ancelotti appointed Chelsea boss". BBC Sport. 1 June 2009.
  16. ^ "Chelsea sack Carlo Ancelotti within an hour of defeat by Everton". The Guardian. 23 May 2011.
  17. ^ "Andre Villas-Boas confirmed as Chelsea manager". BBC Sport. 22 June 2011.
  18. ^ "Steve Holland's managerial career". Soccerbase. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
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