Football management is often seen as a career almost exclusively for the over-50s. A job reserved for those professional footballers who aren’t quite done with the game when they hang up their boots. However, as with everything, managers are getting younger and younger these days as clubs look for any slight advantage they can get over their opponents.
Sheffield Wednesday have seemingly taken that to the extreme as their recent change in the dugout now sees them with the youngest full-time manager in the entire Football League.
With that in mind, we here at Football FanCast have created a list of the 15 youngest full-time managers in the Football League and Premier League combined.
15
Neill Collins – Barnsley (40 years old)
Right, so kicking things off is Barnsley manager Neill Collins, who was born on September 2nd, 1983, making him the one and only man in his 40s on this list – truly ancient by the standards of the rest of these managers.
Collins had quite the playing career, one that saw him ply his trade in his native Scotland, England, and even the USA at the very end. It was in the US that he got his first taste of management as he became the head coach of the Tampa Bay Rowdies in May 2018 after hanging up his boots.
He failed to win anything with the Floridan side, but he did make it to the final of the USL in 2020.
Five years after he started his managerial career, Collins was appointed as the new boss of League One side Barnsley and considering they currently sit in third place in the league, we’d say he’s done a pretty good job so far.
14
David Horseman – Forest Green Rovers (39 years old)
Up next is Forest Green Rovers manager David Horseman, who was born December 26th 1983, or, at least we think he was.
Bizarrely, there seems to be some confusion as to how old Horseman actually is, with some sources claiming he is 39 years old, whereas others have him down as 38.
Back to the man himself, though, and his appointment as Forest Green Rovers boss in July this year represents his first step into first-team management, as his previous role saw him take charge of Southampton’s B team for four years.
Unfortunately, the team are currently in the relegation zone after just three wins from their opening 13 games of the season, so Horseman might not be long for this job.
13
Matt Bloomfield – Wycombe Wanderers (39 years old)
Born February 8th, 1984, Matt Bloomfield is the third-oldest manager on our list, but unlike Horseman, he has a bit more experience as a first-team coach.
The Felixstowe-born gaffer spent almost his entire playing career at Wycombe Wanderers, making 557 appearances for the club and earning himself a singular call-up to England’s Under-19s in the process.
His first steps into management came at League Two side Colchester United, where his success earned him the chance to take over at Wycombe following the departure of Gareth Ainsworth in February 2023.
12
Steven Schumacher – Plymouth Argyle (39 years old)
Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher was born on April 30th, 1984 and makes it onto our list as the 12th youngest manager in the football league.
The Everton youth product had a fruitful career outside the Premier League, playing 260 games in League One and 150 in League Two.
His managerial career began with a short stint as a player/caretaker manager for Southport in 2017 before he joined Plymouth in 2019 to become Ryan Lowe’s assistant.
Two years later, when Lowe joined Preston North End, Schumacher was selected as his replacement at Home Park and has since guided them to the Championship, where he is set to face off against his old boss.
11
Liam Rosenior – Hull City (39 years old)
Hull City manager Liam Rosenior was born on July 9th, 1984 and has been in charge of the Championship side for just under a year following his appointment last November.
His only previous experience in the dugout was at Derby County, where he was both an assistant manager and interim manager in 2022.
With Hull City currently ninth in the Championship, it would appear he is doing a reasonably good job.
10
Pete Wild – Barrow (39 years old)
Pete Wild, born on July 20th 1984, is a rare case on this list as despite now managing a professional football team, he never played the game above amateur level.
He got his start in the Oldham Council before moving onto a raft of other opportunities, including time in Oldham’s academy and as the manager for England’s amputee football team between 2012 and 2015.
His first experience in a league side’s dugout came in December 2018 when he was named Oldham’s caretaker manager. Paul Scholes would ultimately take his place, but not before he led the team to four wins, three losses and one draw.
He would take charge of the former Premier League side two more times, once more as a caretaker and then permanently, before ultimately leaving due to ‘personal reasons’ just three months later.
A three-year spell at Halifax Town followed before he landed his current job with League Two side Barrow.
9
Mat Sadler – Walsall (38 years old)
Born February 26th, 1985, Mat Sadler is the current manager of League Two outfit Walsall FC and is undoubtedly one of the most inexperienced gaffers on this list.
The former defender retired at the West Midlands outfit in 2022 and was only named as the side’s interim manager in April of this year following the sacking of Michael Flynn.
To his credit, Sadler kept the Saddlers in the Football League and was rewarded with a permanent deal at the end of the season.
8
Liam Manning – Oxford United (38 years old)
Born August 20th, 1985, Liam Manning spent most of his short playing career in non-league, playing for sides like Leiston, Woodbridge Town and Long Melford, although he also played in Iceland for Selfoss.
He hung up his playing boots in 2010 and switched his focus to the coaching side of the game, an area he has since found much more success in.
In 2015, he was appointed West Ham United’s Under-23s head coach, a post he maintained until 2019. He would then become head coach of Belgian side Lommel SK in 2020 and then Milton Keynes Dons a year later.
Unfortunately, he was sacked from MK Dons in December 2022 but was only out of work for a short time as Oxford United appointed him as their new manager in March 2023, a position he still holds.
7
Wayne Rooney – Birmingham City (37 years old)
On to the biggest name on the list now and one with plenty of experience behind him, Wayne Rooney.
The Manchester United and England legend was born on October 24th, 1985, and despite being just 37, he has quite the body of work as a manager behind him.
Technically, his first management experience came in 2020 when he was announced as the gaffer for the England team at Soccer Aid 2020.
That said, his first real management experience came just a few months later when he was given the seemingly impossible task of keeping Derby County in the Championship, which somehow he managed to do thanks to a final-day draw with Sheffield Wednesday.
Unfortunately, Rooney’s magic could only do so much, and a second season of fighting off relegation and administration challenges finally resulted in the club’s relegation to League One.
Rooney resigned in the summer of 2022 and just a month later found himself taking charge of MLS side DC United, a team he had played for in the latter stages of his career.
After two seasons in DC, Wazza was appointed as the new Birmingham City boss after their takeover by American billionaire Tom Wagner.
6
Mark Bonner – Cambridge United (37 years old)
Born November 23rd, 1985, Mark Bonner doesn’t have a playing career to help him land managerial positions, but he has been a part of Cambridge United on and off for the best part of two decades.
He has taken up several coaching roles within the club and even managed the side’s feeder team, Cambridge Regional College.
After acting as assistant manager for several years prior, Bonner was named interim boss following Colin Calderwood’s sacking in January 2020. Positive results meant he was handed the first team manager position, a position he has held since.
5
Russell Martin – Southampton (37 years old)
The fifth-youngest manager in the Football League is former Scotland international Russel Martin, who was born on April 10th 1986.
Martin has an extensive playing career behind him, a career that featured spells at Norwich City, Rangers and Milton Keynes Dons. He is also one of the most experienced managers on this list, which isn’t all that surprising considering he has been handed the reigns of former Premier League side Southampton and tasked with taking them back to the top flight.
He started his Saints tenure well enough, but only two wins from his last five games have left them down in tenth in the Championship and a whopping 13 points off the top spot – it could be a challenging year for the former Swansea City boss.
4
Vincent Kompany – Burnley (37 years old)
Breaking into the top four youngest managers in the Football League now is the one and only Premier League manager on this list, Vincent Kompany.
The Belgian icon was born on April 10th, 1986 and currently finds himself trying to keep a rejuvenated Burnley side in the top flight of English football.
Alongside his extensive and incredibly successful playing career, the Manchester City legend has also got quite the managerial CV to his name despite his relatively young age.
Upon leaving the Etihad, he took up a player-manager role at Belgian giants Anderlecht before retiring a year later to focus solely on the managerial side.
Two years later, he was appointed head coach of Burnley and led them back to the Premier League at the first time of asking and transformed the team into one of the best sides to watch in the country.
3
John Mousinho – Portsmouth (37 years old)
John Mousinho was born on April 30th, 1986 and has been a manager for less than a year, signing on the dotted line to take over Portsmouth in January.
While he has minimal experience in terms of management, he had quite an extensive playing career that he can lean on in the dugout.
In all, he made 33 appearances in the Championship, 309 in League One, and 137 in League Two.
2
Kieran McKenna – Ipswich Town (37 years old)
Onto a man who is absolutely flying at the moment and the man we’d put our money on going the furthest as a manager, Kieran McKenna.
The Ipswich Town boss was born on May 14th 1986, and since taking charge of the Norfolk club, he has taken them from a mediocre League One side to one of the two best teams in the Championship.
The Tractor Boys were promoted from the third tier last season with 98 points and are currently second in the Championship with 25 goals to their name – the most in the division.
McKenna was appointed as the team’s manager in 2021 after spending three years as an assistant at Manchester United, and there can be no denying the magnificent job he has done so far.
1
Danny Rohl – Sheffield Wednesday (34 years old)
Sheffield Wednesday’s new manager, Danny Rohl, was born on April 28th, 1989, making him the only 34-year-old permanently employed manager in the Football League.
The German was appointed last week following the sacking of Xisco Munoz after the club’s disastrous start to the season, which has left them rock bottom of the Championship at the time of writing.
While Rohl has never managed a senior team, he has acquired a considerable amount of coaching experience with RB Leipzig, Southampton, and Bayern Munich, and he was even the assistant manager for the German national team.
It’s impossible to predict how the young gaffer will get on in Sheffield, but one thing is sure: it can’t get much worse!
