Legendary coaches in the world of sports

No matter how many victories they oversee, coaches tend not to enjoy as much of the limelight as the star players on their teams. And often the most softly-spoken, unassuming coaches are the most successful ones.

Being the best means breeding a winning mentality, inspiring respect and personifying integrity – no mean feat in the cutthroat world of elite sports. In this article we’ve highlighted ten of the very best coaches to ever do it, in any sport.

1. Vince Lombardi (American Football): The NFL’s greatest ever coach is held in such high regard that the Super Bowl trophy is named after him. Lombardi took a ramshackle New York Giants team and turning them into championship winners within three seasons, revolutionising the sports’ tactics in the process. He then led the Green Bay Packers to five NFL championships in the 1960s, including the first two Super Bowls.
2. John Wooden (Basketball): Wooden is considered the greatest NCAA basketball head coach of all time, having coached the UCLA Bruins to 10 NCAA national championships in 12 years, including an unprecedented seven consecutive titles from 1967 to 1973. Over the course of his 40-year career as a coach, Wooden built multiple title-winning teams, an elite athletic program and a legacy that still persists to this day.
3. Sir Alex Ferguson (Football): As the manager of Manchester United from 1986 to 2013, Sir Alex Ferguson won more trophies than any other manager in the history of football, including 13 English Premier League titles and two UEFA Champions League trophies. He played a central role turning United into the global behemoth it is today, managing not just the first team but the entire club. As the club’s former chief executive David Gill puts it: “Steve Jobs was Apple; Sir Alex Ferguson is Manchester United”.
4. Bill Belichick (American Football): As the head coach of the New England Patriots, Belichick has the most wins and appearances (nine) in Super Bowl history and is widely regarded as one of the greatest football minds in the history of the sport. He found success making smart, unconventional moves and building teams around overlooked players that would thrive under his watch – such as Tom Brady, a sixth-round draft pick who went on to become the most decorated player in American football history under Belichick.
5. Phil Jackson (Basketball): Known as the “Zen Master,” Jackson won 11 NBA championships as a head coach between 1989 and 2011 – six with the Chicago Bulls and five with the Los Angeles Lakers – which is more than anyone else in NBA history. In 2007, Jackson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, having already been named one of the 10 greatest coaches in league history in 1996, as part of the NBA’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
6. Johan Cruyff (Football): As both a player and manager, Cruyff had a significant impact on football as a whole, and is regarded as not just one of the best players of the sport, but one of the best coaches too. He implemented his vision of “Total Football” and achieved his most notable managerial success with Barcelona, winning multiple La Liga titles and setting up the Barça dynasty for many successful years to come.
7. Pep Guardiola (Football): Known for his innovative and possession-based style of play, Pep Guardiola has achieved success with Barcelona – taking up Johann Cruyff’s mantle having captained the team as a player – then at Bayern Munich, and currently Manchester City. He continues to win domestic and international titles to this day, including four of the last five Premier League titles.
8. Sir Graham Henry (Rugby): Henry guaranteed his place in the hall of managerial greats by coaching the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, to victory in the 2011 Rugby World Cup, thus ending a 24-year drought for the team. Across his distinguished coaching career, he also coached the Welsh national team, the British and Irish Lions and Auckland.
9. Casey Stengel (Baseball): Stengel’s magnetic personality and gift of the gab made him one of the most beloved characters in baseball. He famously managed the New York Yankees to seven World Series titles in 10 years, an unprecedented feat in baseball history. When asked about the secret to his success as a coach, Stangel deadpanned: “Keep the five guys who hate you away from the five who are undecided.”
10. Herb Brooks (Ice Hockey): Brooks coached the U.S. men’s hockey team to a historic gold medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics, an upset against the highly-favoured Soviet Union which has since become known as the “Miracle on Ice.” Brooks would go on to enter the NHL coaching ranks, and was named NHL Coach of the Year after three years managing the New York Rangers.