Ancelotti, Klopp, Pochettino... The 10 highest-paid national team coaches

03.10.26 FT Friendly International

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The German daily “Bild” has revealed the salaries of the ten highest-paid national team coaches in the world. These coaches earn particularly high annual salaries, with Carlo Ancelotti leading the way ahead of Jürgen Klopp and Mauricio Pochettino. Here is the Top 10.

1. Carlo Ancelotti – Brazil: €10 million

Carlo Ancelotti tops this ranking with an estimated annual salary of €10 million. Having taken charge of Brazil in May 2025, the Italian extended his contract until 2030.

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The man who has lifted five Champions League titles in his career has plenty of work to do after being eliminated in the round of 16 of the World Cup by Norway (1-2).

2. Jürgen Klopp – Germany: €7 million

Jürgen Klopp is in second place with around €7 million per year. After spells at Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, where he won the Premier League and the Champions League among other titles, the German took charge of the Mannschaft in 2026.

He recorded his first victory a few days ago against Serbia (2-0), following a draw with the Netherlands (1-1) and a surprising defeat to Greece (0-1).

3. Mauricio Pochettino – United States: €6.8 million

Mauricio Pochettino completes the podium with an estimated salary of €6.8 million. The Argentine managed Espanyol, Southampton, Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea before taking charge of the USA in 2024.

After the 2026 World Cup, he extended his contract with the United States until 2030 despite an early round-of-16 elimination against Belgium (1-4).

4. Thomas Tuchel – England: €6 million

Thomas Tuchel ranks fourth with €6 million per year. The German has coached several major European clubs, including Dortmund, PSG, Chelsea and Bayern Munich.

His main title remains the Champions League, which he won with Chelsea in 2021. He has been in charge of England since January 2025 and extended his contract until Euro 2028. He finished third at the last World Cup after his victory over France in the third-place play-off (4-6).

5. Luis de la Fuente – Spain: €5 million

Luis de la Fuente now earns around €5 million per year in charge of Spain, where he has won unanimous praise for his performances.

Having joined the senior team in 2022, he led La Roja to the Euro 2024 title and then to the 2026 World Cup triumph. The Spanish Federation has also just extended his contract until 2032.

6. Jorge Jesus – Portugal: €4 million

Jorge Jesus is sixth with an estimated remuneration of €4 million. The Portuguese built most of his reputation at Benfica, where he won three league titles, before having spells at Sporting, Flamengo, Fenerbahçe, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr.

Having been crowned Saudi Arabian champion with Al-Nassr, where he worked with Cristiano Ronaldo among others, he took charge of Portugal in July 2026. He has made a good start with the Seleção, but his recent problems with Ronaldo have disrupted the atmosphere within the team.

7. Zinédine Zidane – France: €3.6 million

Zinédine Zidane is in seventh place with €3.6 million per year. After a brilliant playing career, the Frenchman established himself as Real Madrid coach, notably winning three consecutive Champions League titles between 2016 and 2018.

In July 2026, he finally took charge of Les Bleus following Didier Deschamps’ departure. He won two matches in Turkey (0-1) and Belgium (0-1) before being held to a draw by Italy (1-1).

8. Xavi – Netherlands: €3 million

Xavi earns around €3 million with the Netherlands. The former Barcelona midfielder began his coaching career at Al-Sadd before returning to his boyhood club, Barça.

In August 2026, he was appointed manager of the Netherlands on a contract running until the 2030 World Cup. He recorded two draws against Germany (1-1) and Greece (2-2), as well as a victory over Serbia (1-2).

9. Lionel Scaloni – Argentina: €2.3 million

The 2022 world champion, Lionel Scaloni is in ninth place with an estimated salary of €2.3 million.

Having taken over on the Argentina bench in 2018, he has since won the Copa América in 2021 and 2024, the 2022 Finalissima and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In 2026, he reached the symbolic milestone of 100 matches in charge of La Albiceleste despite a final defeat to Spain (0-1).

10. Ralf Rangnick – Austria: €2 million

Ralf Rangnick rounds off this Top 10 with around €2 million per year. The German coached Stuttgart, Hannover, Schalke, Hoffenheim and Leipzig before a brief spell at Manchester United.

Austria’s manager since 2022, he extended his contract until Euro 2028 despite a 3-0 defeat in the round of 32 against La Roja, the eventual champions.

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.

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