Sarina Petronella Wiegman OON CBE (; born 26 October 1969), also known as Sarina Wiegman-Glotzbach, is a Dutch football manager and former player who has been the manager of the England women's national team since September 2021.
In her playing career, Wiegman started out as a central midfielder before moving to defence. In 1989, she attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she played for the North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team. Returning to the Netherlands, she joined the women's team of Ter Leede in addition to her job as a physical education teacher. With Ter Leede, she won the Dutch championship and the KNVB Cup once.
Wiegman represented the Netherlands from 1987 to 2001. Although she was capped 104 times for her country (which was initially recognised by the KNVB), caps won against non-FIFA-affiliated opponents resulted in her official cap total standing just short of a century at 99.
After retiring in 2003, Wiegman began her coaching career with the women's teams of Ter Leede and ADO Den Haag. In 2014, she became the assistant national coach of the Dutch women's team. In 2016, Wiegman received her full coaching licence and became the first woman to work as coach for a Dutch professional football team. After being appointed as the head coach of the Dutch national team, Wiegman led them to victory at the UEFA Women's Euro 2017. Two years later, the team became runners-up of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. In August 2020, it was announced that Wiegman would manage the England women's national team from September 2021 following the end of Phil Neville's contract. She remained manager of the Netherlands for the Olympics, hoping to bring home a medal at the 2020 Olympics, but the Netherlands were eliminated at the quarter-final stage. She then became the England manager and led the Lionesses to victory at the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 on home soil. It was the first trophy for an English senior team of either sex since the men's team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup.
Early and personal life
Wiegman was born on 26 October 1969 in The Hague and started playing football on the streets at an early age. At the age of six, she joined ESDO from Wassenaar, where she played alongside boys. She also played for local side HSV Celeritas, where she was able to join the women's team. She is married to Marten Glotzbach.
Playing career
In 1987, Wiegman joined KFC '71, where she won the KNVB Cup in the same year.
In 1988, while in China for the 1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament, she met USWNT head coach Anson Dorrance, who invited her to come and study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and play for the North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team, which she did in 1989. At North Carolina, Wiegman played alongside such players as Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly and Carla Overbeck. They became NCAA champions in 1989.
Wiegman later described the team quality and working conditions as being "of the highest level," which made for a stark contrast with the situation in the Netherlands when she returned there after one year. Here, all women's players had to work aside from football. Wiegman became a physical education teacher at the secondary school Segbroek College in The Hague, Netherlands, a job she would keep for the rest of her playing career.
In 1994, Wiegman joined Ter Leede, where she would win two Dutch championships (2001 and 2003) and one KNVB Cup (2001). In 2003, she retired after becoming pregnant with her second child.
International career
Wiegman gained 104 caps for the Netherlands, scoring three goals, between 1987 and 2001. She also captained the team.
In 1986, at the age of 16, Wiegman was first selected for the Netherlands. On 23 May 1987, at the age of 17, she made her debut in an away match against Norway, which was Dick Advocaat's only match in charge of the Netherlands Women. She played at the 1988 FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament, where the Netherlands reached the quarter-finals. Wiegman also helped the Netherlands reach the quarter-finals of the 1989, 1991 and 1993 European Championships, although they never reached the final tournament of an official World Cup or European Championship.
On 9 April 2001, Wiegman gained her 100th cap in a home friendly against Denmark, becoming the first Dutch footballer to do so. Two days later, she was honoured with a shield awarded by the men's head coach Louis van Gaal. During his speech, he said: "I have a lot of respect for Sarina. For the men, everything is arranged. Here, this is much more difficult."