Arizona Tribune - Slovenia looking for new coach after World Cup bid failure

NYSE - LSE
SCS 0.12% 16.14 $
CMSC 0.55% 23.43 $
RIO 0.65% 76.74 $
BCC -0.98% 76.26 $
NGG 0.07% 74.69 $
GSK 0.96% 48.88 $
BCE 0.9% 23.4 $
AZN -1.35% 90.29 $
JRI 0% 13.72 $
BTI -0.67% 58.37 $
CMSD 0.51% 23.4 $
RBGPF 0% 81.17 $
RYCEF -0.68% 14.64 $
RELX 0.5% 40.28 $
VOD -0.16% 12.54 $
BP -0.99% 35.53 $
Slovenia looking for new coach after World Cup bid failure
Slovenia looking for new coach after World Cup bid failure / Photo: Jure Makovec - AFP

Slovenia looking for new coach after World Cup bid failure

Slovenia are looking for a new coach after deciding to part ways with Matjaz Kek following their failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, the national federation announced on Monday.

Text size:

The 64-year-old's contract expired at the end of November and the Slovenian Football Association (NZS) said that it was time to give someone else a chance.

"We agreed that, after seven years of very good partnership, marked by a very successful qualification to the (2024) European Championship, it was time to end our work together," NZS said in a statement.

"We will choose a new coach... without any time pressure," the statement added, stipulating that a new handler would be named before the squad's next match in March.

Kek guided Slovenia to the Euros last 16 in Germany in 2024 -- the first time in 24 years that they had reached the Euros -- but they failed to get through their World Cup qualifying group, finishing a distant third behind Switzerland and Kosovo, having not won any of their six matches.

They have twice qualified for the World Cup -- in 2002 and 2010, the latter of which was achieved during Kek's first spell as national team coach.

M.White--AT