Managers coming and going is very much a part of life in football, and with the managerial merry-go-round in full swing, the number of dugout changes in the 2024/25 season grew right up to the end of the campaign.
Premier League bosses like Russell Martin and Sean Dyche could not avoid the dreaded axe, while the Championship saw the likes of Wayne Rooney given their marching orders after dismal campaigns from the dugout.
Firings were rife throughout the rest of the EFL too, as clubs scrambled to avoid failure by making drastic changes.
We have the full list of dismissals here, with nearly 50 managers leaving their posts during the season.
All 20 Premier League managers' salaries (lowest to highest)
How much each Premier League gaffer earns.
ByCharlie Smith
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Manager
Club left
Date
Time in charge
Ryan Lowe
Preston
12th August
2 years, 249 days
Neil Critchley
Blackpool
21st August
1 year, 90 days
Paul Simpson
Carlisle
31st August
2 years, 189 days
Steven Schumacher
Stoke
16th September
272 days
Erol Bulut
Cardiff
22nd September
1 year, 111 days
Mark Robinson
Burton Albion
23rd October
141 days
Mark Kennedy
Swindon
25th October
149 days
Erik ten Hag
Man Utd
28th October
2 years, 158 days
Paul Hurst
Shrewsbury
3rd November
284 days
Mark Robins
Coventry
7th November
7 years, 246 days
Steve Cooper
Leicester
24th November
157 days
Tim Walter
Hull
27th November
180 days
Jon Brady
Northampton
5th December
3 years, 299 days
Neil Harris
Millwall
10th December
293 days
Gary O’Neil
Wolves
15th December
1 year, 128 days
Des Buckingham
Oxford
15th December
1 year, 29 days
Russell Martin
Southampton
15th December
1 year, 177 days
Matt Taylor
Bristol Rovers
16th December
1 year, 15 days
Charlie Adam
Fleetwood
22nd December
357 days
Narcis Pelach
Stoke
27th December
100 days
Wayne Rooney
Plymouth
31st December
220 days
Mark Bonner
Gillingham
5th January
243 days
Julen Lopetegui
West Ham
8th January
230 days
Rob Edwards
Luton
9th January
2 years, 53 days
Sean Dyche
Everton
9th January
1 year, 345 days
Stephen Clemence
Barrow
19th January
233 days
Ian Evatt
Bolton
22nd January
4 years, 205 days
Mike Williamson
Carlisle
3rd February
137 days
Paul Warne
Derby
7th February
2 years, 138 days
Garry Monk
Cambridge
16th February
349 days
Luke Williams
Swansea
17th February
1 year, 43 days
Nigel Adkins
Tranmere
25th February
1 year, 115 days
Shaun Maloney
Wigan
2nd March
2 years, 33 days
Scott Lindsey
MK Dons
2nd March
158 days
Michael Duff
Huddersfield
9th March
299 days
Darrell Clarke
Barnsley
12th March
293 days
Rob Elliot
Crawley
19th March
169 days
Steve Evans
Rotherham
30th March
347 days
Ivan Juric
Southampton
7th April
105 days
Omer Riza
Cardiff
19th April
209 days
Tony Mowbray
West Brom
21st April
93 days
Johannes Hoff Thorup
Norwich
22nd April
327 days
Nelson Jardim
Newport
24th April
282 days
Inigo Calderon
Bristol Rovers
4th May
129 days
Tom Cleverley
Watford
6th May
1 year, 12 days
1 Ryan Lowe (Preston North End) Left: 12th August
Championship side Preston North End parted ways with head coach Ryan Lowe after just one league game this season.
Following the Lilywhites’ 2-0 defeat to Sheffield United, Lowe asked to leave the club, telling Preston’s board he wanted “a change”. The defeat to the Blades was Preston’s sixth on the bounce, with Lowe’s side having lost their final five games of the previous season – a run of form that saw them fade out of the play-off race.
2 Neil Critchley (Blackpool) Sacked: 21st August
Blackpool sacked manager Neil Critchley after they began their 2024/25 League One campaign with back-to-back defeats against Crawley Town and Stockport County.
The 45-year-old had previously guided Blackpool to the Championship by way of the play-offs in 2021, and returned to Bloomfield Road in May 2023 after spells with Aston Villa and QPR. However, he was unable to recapture the magic of two years prior, with the Seasiders finishing the 2023/24 campaign in eighth.
3 Paul Simpson (Carlisle United) Sacked: 31st August
Paul Simpson was let go by Carlisle United following a 2-1 defeat to Tranmere Rovers back in August. The defeat was their third from four league matches this season, having been relegated to League Two under Simpson’s tenure last year.
“Everyone at the club would like to thank Paul and his staff for their efforts,” Carlisle said in a statement.
4 Steven Schumacher (Stoke City) Sacked: 16th September
Stoke City sacked Steven Schumacher after the Potters lost three of their first five games of the campaign. The final straw came by way of a 1-0 loss to Oxford United at the Kassam Stadium.
Schumacher’s tenure as Stoke boss lasted just nine months in total, with the 40-year-old having left Plymouth Argyle to take the job in December 2023.
Two days after sacking Schumacher, Stoke appointed Norwich City coach Narcis Pelach as their new manager on a three-year contract.
5 Erol Bulut (Cardiff City) Sacked: 22nd September
Cardiff City were rock bottom of the Championship when they fired head coach Erol Bulut in mid-September.
The Bluebirds had picked up just one point from six games and scored one goal – their worst start to a season in 94 years. Bulut’s final game was a 2-0 home defeat against Leeds United. He has since been replaced by Omer Riza, who remains in interim charge heading into December.
6 Mark Robinson (Burton Albion) Sacked: 23rd October
Mark Robinson was relieved of his duties at Burton Albion following a run of seven successive defeats in all competitions.
“We feel we have reached a point where a change is necessary to improve the team’s results,” sporting director Bendik Hareide said at the time.
Robinson, 58, is the third Burton manager in three seasons to have been given the axe before Christmas, following in the footsteps of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Dino Maamria.
7 Mark Kennedy (Swindon Town) Sacked: 25th October
Swindon Town sacked head coach Mark Kennedy after less than five months in charge following a 2-1 defeat at Salford. Kennedy won just 3 of his 15 games in charge of the Robins, who were 22nd in League Two at the time of his departure.
Just hours after Kennedy’s sacking, Swindon appointed former Bristol Rovers, QPR and Blackpool manager Ian Holloway as their new head coach.
8 Erik ten Hag (Manchester United) Sacked: 28th October
By far and away the most high-profile sacking of the season, Erik ten Hag was let go by Manchester United following a disastrous start to the season. The Dutchman’s final game was a 2-1 defeat to West Ham United, which left the Red Devils 14th in the Premier League with just three wins from their opening nine games.
Though he guided United to two trophies during his two-and-a-half-year spell at Old Trafford, Ten Hag has been dubbed the club’s worst-ever manager. Ruben Amorim has since stepped in as his replacement.
9 Paul Hurst (Shrewsbury Town) Sacked: 3rd November
Shrewsbury Town parted ways with head coach Paul Hurst after a run of just 1 win in 12 games in all competitions, leaving them second from bottom in League One. Assistant boss Chris Doig was also let go.
Hurst and Doig were in their second spell at the club, having previously led the Shrews to the League One play-off final in 2018.
“Everyone at the football club is hugely disappointed their second spell hasn’t worked out and we find ourselves in our current position,” Shrewsbury said in a statement.
10 Mark Robins (Coventry City) Sacked: 7th November
Coventry City fired boss Mark Robins after a run of just 4 wins in 14 Championship games this season. Robins, 54, had been in charge of the Sky Blues for 2,803 days, making him the English Football League’s longest-serving manager at the time.
Former Chelsea and England midfielder Frank Lampard has been appointed as Robins’ successor on a two-and-a-half-year deal, replacing interim boss Rhys Carr.
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