Former West Ham United and Chelsea manager Graham Potter has been appointed as the new head coach of Sweden on a short-term basis.
The Englishman had expressed desire to take over the role following the dismissal of Jon Dahl Tomasson after a 1-0 defeat to Kosovo last week.
The Swedish FA had parted ways with Tomasson following an underwhelming start to their qualifying campaign for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with only a single point from their first four matches.
Potter, 50, is tasked with leading the Swedes to qualification for the showpiece event next year, with the playoffs route their only realistic option of getting into the tournament.
“I am very humble about the assignment, but also inspired”, the 50-year-old said after his appointment.
“Sweden has fantastic players who deliver in the best leagues every week. My job will be to create the conditions so that we as a team deliver at the highest level to take Sweden to the World Cup next summer.”
The former Brighton manager becomes the second foreign manager in the country history, with this being his first-ever managerial position at a country level.
His previous spells have been in charge of clubs, will spells at the dugouts of the likes of Ostersund, Brighton, Chelsea and West Ham United, where he was dismissed in September after a poor start to the season.
“It feels very good that Graham comes in as the manager of the men’s national team. We are all aware of the situation we are in, and believe that with his leadership skills he will get the team together in a good way”, Sweden FA Chief Kim Kallstrom said in a statement.
Potter’s first game in charge of the team comes in next month’s qualifier against Switzerland, before rounding off group action against Slovenia few days later.
The length of his contract automatically extends through the playoffs and then to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, should Sweden book their spot.
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