FA will not decide Roy Hodgson’s England future until after Euro 2016 finals
Football Association chairman Greg Dyke insists no decision will be made on a new contract for England boss Roy Hodgson until after next summer’s European Championship.
Fun Fact: The Football Association, English football’s governing body, was formed in 1863. ‘Organised football’ or ‘football as we know it’ dates from that time.
Ebenezer Morley, a London solicitor who formed Barnes FC in 1862, could be called the ‘father’ of The Association. He wasn’t a public school man but old boys from several public schools joined his club and there were ‘feverish’ disputes about the way the game should be played. Want more info on the FA? Click Here.
Hodgson’s deal runs out following the finals in France, with England drawn on Saturday in the same group as Wales, Russia and Slovakia.
FA chief executive Martin Glenn said ahead of the draw that Hodgson is “our man” for the World Cup in 2018, but another poor performance at a major championship could change the thinking.
Hodgson’s England flopped at the World Cup in Brazil in 2014, exiting the tournament after losing their first two games.
Dyke told BBC Radio Five Live’s Sportswear program, ” We won’t decide on the future of the England manager until after the tournament.”
“Obviously, if we’ve been successful, we will want him to stay on. If we’re less successful, then we’d have to think again. I think if we don’t get out of the group stage, Roy wouldn’t want to continue.”
“Ideally, if we’re successful, yes (we’d like him to stay until the 2018 World Cup). We’ve been discussing with Roy for some months now about what the future plans are. Nothing has changed. We now know who we’ve got in the draw, that’s all that’s changed.”
Dyke was famously pictured making a cut-throat gesture after England were handed a tough draw for the World Cup in Brazil but is much more optimistic this time around.
He thinks reaching the semi-finals is a realistic prospect, and sees no reason England cannot challenge for the title.
Dyke said, “England-Wales is a good, exciting game, and my reaction to the draw overall is, ‘Yeah, that’s fine’. It’s not the hardest, it’s not the easiest, but it’s fine. We’ll be hopeful of getting through that group.”
“I think we’ve got a good chance in this tournament. There’s some good sides but I think we’ve certainly got a good chance to get through to the last four and, if we do that, you can win.”
“We’re amongst the best sides there. We’ve got some good young, exciting players.”
England being drawn in a group with Wales understandably dominated the headlines, with the clash between the local rivals to take place in Lens on June 16.
Dyke also commented, ” We had a one in two chance of either drawing Wales, Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland. I think Wales is the sexiest of the three to us because of two or three really quality players playing for Wales.”
