A Beautiful Game

Sven-Göran Eriksson was born and grew up in Sweden. Though a talented footballer, it was in football management that he found rapid success and was headhunted by a string of world-famous European clubs – Gothenburg, Benfica, Roma, Lazio – winning many national and international trophies. In 2001, he became England’s first foreign manager, reversing years of decline and turning the squad into true World Cup contenders. This was followed by stints managing Manchester City, Mexico, Ivory Coast, Leicester City and in China. In January 2024, it was announced that he had terminal cancer. He died in August 2024 at the age of 76.