Erik ten Hag

Erik ten Hag (Dutch: [tɛn ˈɦɑx] ten HAKH; born 2 February 1970) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player. He is set to work as technical director of Eredivisie club Twente at the start of the 2026–27 Eredivisie season.

Ten Hag played as a centre-back and began his career with Eredivisie club Twente. He joined De Graafschap in 1990, and won the Eerste Divisie in his first season. He rejoined Twente in 1992 and transferred to RKC Waalwijk two years later, where he remained for one season before signing with Utrecht in 1995. Ten Hag returned to Twente for a third time in 1996, where he won KNVB Cup in 2001. He retired from playing in 2002 at age 32.

Ten Hag began his managerial career in 2012 at Go Ahead Eagles, where he led the club to promotion to the Eredivisie in his debut season. He then joined Bayern Munich II in 2013, winning promotion to the Regionalliga Bayern in 2014. He returned to the Netherlands in 2015 as head coach and sporting director at Utrecht. He joined Ajax in 2018, where he won three Eredivisie titles, two KNVB Cups, and led the team to the semi-finals of the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League. In 2022, he was appointed manager of Manchester United. During his tenure at the club, United won the EFL Cup and FA Cup in successive seasons, but failed to make significant progress in the Premier League or European competitions. He was dismissed in 2024 following a string of poor results. He was announced as Bayer Leverkusen's new head coach, ahead of the 2025–26 season. He was sacked in September 2025 after having coached just three matches.