Vladimir Petkovic tops a cheeky new ranking of the 48 managers heading to the World Cup in USA, Mexico and Canada, with Thomas Tuchel placed fourth and Graham Potter narrowly ahead. The league table combined facial symmetry, height, age and managerial win rate to produce attractiveness scores — sparking debate as familiar Premier League names cluster mid-table while some unexpected figures climb the list.
Attractiveness ranking of World Cup managers — the headlines
Thomas Tuchel, the former Chelsea boss, finished fourth in a 48-manager attractiveness ranking compiled ahead of the World Cup in USA, Mexico and Canada. Vladimir Petkovic claimed top spot, narrowly ahead of Australia’s Tony Popovic and Sweden’s Graham Potter. The study fused facial symmetry with physical attributes and coaching records to generate final scores for each gaffer.
Top 10 managers in the ranking
Winners and near-misses
Vladimir Petkovic emerged as the top-rated manager with a headline score of 9.30, credited to a high “golden ratio” percentage, above-average height and a strong win rate. Tony Popovic finished second, boosted by his 6ft 4ins stature, while Graham Potter edged Tuchel for third and fourth respectively in a tight battle.
Other notable entries
Former Chelsea names and high-profile European coaches populate the upper mid-table: Emerse Fae (Ivory Coast), Julen Lopetegui (Qatar) and Julian Nagelsmann (Germany) all scored in the low 8s. Holland’s Ronald Koeman, Switzerland’s Murat Yakin and Panama’s Thomas Christiansen rounded out the top ten.
Surprises and lowlights
Big names further down
Some globally recognised managers landed disappointingly low by these measures. Ralf Rangnick ranked 34th, while Carlo Ancelotti and Mauricio Pochettino sat in the high 20s and low 30s respectively. Didier Deschamps and Steve Clarke were also around the same zone, showing that managerial celebrity doesn’t always translate to high scores in this exercise.
Bottom of the list
At the other end, Darren Bazeley found himself last in 48th place with the lowest score, while Marcelo Bielsa and Jesse Marsch — both with strong coaching résumés — were surprisingly low in the 40s. The spread underscores how the composite metrics in the study produced unexpected rankings beyond pure on-field reputation.
Methodology — what the ranking measured
The ranking combined facial symmetry (the so-called “golden ratio”) with measurable traits — height and age — and managerial success (win percentage) to arrive at a final attractiveness score out of ten. That blend of aesthetic and performance metrics deliberately mixes subjective and objective factors to provoke discussion rather than settle any sporting argument.
Why this matters — and why it doesn’t
On the surface this is light-hearted, fan-facing content that generates headlines and social chatter during a major tournament. For managers it is irrelevant to the job of preparing teams, but it does highlight how modern football conversations increasingly blur performance, personality and publicity. For followers and media, these lists feed engagement; for teams, winning matches remains the only ranking that truly counts.
What to watch next
Expect the narrative around managers during the World Cup to focus on tactics and results, but also on storylines that humanize or dramatize the tournament.
Rankings like this are noise — entertaining and shareable — but the impact that matters will play out on the pitch in group stages and knockout rounds.
The Sun
