Hope Powell’s 15-year reign as England head coach came to an end on this day in 2013 as the Football Association decided the time was right “for a fresh outlook”.
Following a successful playing career Powell took on the head coach role in 1998, guiding England to the European Championship final in 2009, where they lost 6-2 to Germany.
The Lionesses, however, crashed out of Euro 2013 at the group stage, taking just one point to finish bottom of Group C as Powell ultimately paid the price for the dismal showing in Sweden.
Regarding the decision, then-FA general secretary Alex Horne said: “Hope deserves a lot of credit for her commitment to developing the national teams over such a long period.
“However, after the disappointment of the recent tournament in Sweden, the Club England board believe the time is right to make a change and for a fresh outlook.”
Mark Sampson was appointed as the full-time successor to Powell, taking over in December 2013 and leading England to third place at the 2015 World Cup and the semi-finals of Euro 2017.
Powell, who also led Great Britain’s women’s football team to the quarter-finals of the 2012 Olympics, went on to spend five years as Brighton boss before taking up a post as technical director at Birmingham in July.
