Thomas Tuchel second in top 10 highest-paid international managers in 2025
Five of the 10 highest-paid international managers are currently working in Europe, while bosses in South America are also being well paid.
With football being the lucrative business that it is, it won’t come as a huge surprise to learn that the top international managers are earning the big bucks.
Using figures provided by Transfermarkt, we’ve assessed the 10 highest-paid international managers in 2025.
10. Fernando Batista – €2.6million per year
Currently in charge of Venezuela, Batista reportedly makes slightly more than Argentine head coach Lionel Scaloni and Paraguay’s Gustavo Alfaro.
Under the management of Batista, Venezuela are certainly no pushover, having won their last two World Cup qualifiers.
9. Ronald Koeman – €3million per year
Koeman landed the Netherlands job for the second time in 2023, taking over from Louis van Gaal.
The 62-year-old aims to stick around until at least the World Cup next year, provided that the Netherlands manage to qualify for the tournament.
8. Ricardo Gareca – €3.3million per year
Gareca spent six years managing Peru from 2015 to 2022, but these days you’ll find him in the Chile dug-out.
The 67-year-old has been in charge since January last year, although results have been inconsistent under the Argentine boss.
Chile failed to progress from their group at the 2024 Copa America and Gareca has only won four of the 16 games he’s managed so far.
Currently earning €3.3million per year, you’d imagine that he’s under a bit of pressure right now with that sort of record.
7. Marcelo Bielsa – €3.5million per year
After being sacked by Leeds United in 2022, Bielsa has since returned to international football with Uruguay.
The 69-year-old has prior international experience with the likes of Argentina and Chile, and he’s done a steady job recently with Uruguay.
He guided them to a third-place finish at the 2024 Copa America and will now be fully focused on qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
6. Didier Deschamps – €3.8million per year
Having been in charge of France since the summer of 2012, Deschamps is one of the longest-serving managers in international football.
As of writing, only Luxembourg boss Luc Holtz and Andorra head coach Koldo Alvarez have been in their international job for longer.
Since 2012, Deschamps has won the World Cup and Nations League, along with finishing as the runner-up in those competitions too.
His current deal is valid until 2026 and it’s thought that he will step down as France manager after the upcoming World Cup.
5. Roberto Martinez – €4million per year
After spending six years with Belgium, Martinez landed the Portugal job back in January 2023.
His record isn’t to be sniffed at either. He’s won 21 of his 30 matches as Portugal boss and recently won the UEFA Nations League final against Spain.
With several rising stars coming through, Martinez and Portugal could be ones to look out for at the 2026 World Cup.
4. Julian Nagelsmann – €4.9million per year
Aged 37, Nagelsmann is the youngest manager on this list by quite some distance.
After leaving Bayern Munich, he wasn’t out of work for long as the German national team promptly appointed him in September 2023.
There’s a sense that Germany are currently going through a transitional phase within their national squad and it’ll be Nagelsmann’s job to make them competitive ahead of the World Cup next year.
Currently earning €4.9million per year, he’s being well paid for his services.
3. Mauricio Pochettino – €5.3million per year
After harshly being sacked by Chelsea, Pochettino spent a few months biding his time before accepting the United States job in September last year.
His start to life in the States has been a bit of a mixed bag, having lost four of his first nine matches.
However, despite their inconsistent form of late, Pochettino still thinks that the United States could win the World Cup next summer.
“We need to believe,” Pochettino recently told reporters.
“We need to compete like today and for sure we’re going to have the possibility to win the World Cup.”
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2. Thomas Tuchel – €5.9million per year
Tuchel officially took over as England boss at the start of 2025 and has won all three of his opening matches.
While the German boss boasts a 100% winning record as England manager, there’s still a sense that the Three Lions haven’t quite hit top gear under Tuchel as of yet.
The 51-year-old has plenty of experience when it comes to knockout competitions, though. With Tuchel at the helm, England will likely be among the favourites for the World Cup next year.
1. Carlo Ancelotti – €9.5million per year
After taking the Brazil job last month, Ancelotti subsequently became the highest-paid international manager in the world.
The Italian coach has been linked with the Brazilian job for years, but the timing of his appointment seems ideal as Brazil prepare for the World Cup next year.
Taking home a yearly salary of €9.5million, he’ll no doubt have his sights set on winning it all in the United States next summer.
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