FA chief executive Mark Bullingham has vowed that any approach from the USA for Lionesses head coach Sarina Wiegman will be rejected.
Wiegman is expected to be in the mix for the job after Vlatko Andonovski resigned overnight, following a disappointing early exit at the World Cup.
Since taking charge of England in 2021, Wiegman has worked wonders, leading the Lionesses to Euros glory last summer and guiding them to Sunday’s World Cup Final.
Her contract runs until 2025 and the FA held talks with the 53-year-old Dutch coach about a new deal last year.
The FA are keen to tie Wiegman down to a long-term contract and are confident she is happy to continue in the role.
“From our side, she’s someone we’d like to have with us for a very long time,” said Bullingham. “We have always said that we’d get to it after a tournament.
“We had good conversations after the Euros, there will be an appropriate time to do it.
“We’ve got a bit of time, because obviously she’s contracted to 2025, and she’ll obviously want to have a decent holiday after this. But all I’ll say is we’re massive fans of her.
“We believe she’s happy and we’d love to continue working with her for a long time.”
Wiegman masterminded a brilliant display on Wednesday, as the Lionesses beat co-hosts Australia 3-1 to set up a final against Spain.
Asked if the FA would reject an approach from the USA, Bullingham said: “Yes, 100 per cent.
“It is not about money. We are very, very happy with her and we feel she is happy. I think that is the answer.
“We’ve seen lots of rumours and, look, she is a special talent. We know that. From our side, she’s obviously contracted through until 2025.
“We think she’s doing a great job. We’re obviously huge supporters of her and I think, hopefully, she feels the same way.”
Asked if he feared Wiegman might feel she has achieved all she can with England after the World Cup, Bullingham said: “I can’t see that! That’s not [her] as an individual.”
He also said on Thursday that, in the long-term, he would like England men’s and women’s managers to be paid the same. He added that the FA would consider a female coach to manage the men’s team.
Meanwhile, the FA remain locked in dispute with the Lionesses over World Cup bonuses. The players are unhappy that other countries, such as the United States, are to receive performance-related bonuses and they are not.
Talks were put on hold until after the tournament, and Bullingham is confident that a resolution will be found.
“We’re sorting it [out] after the tournament,” he said. “I think they have a very strong case before, a very strong case after, but the reality is, there’s a discussion to be had.
“There wasn’t a lot of time before the tournament. FIFA announced the prize money very late and a completely different model that led to a different type of discussion, so it just means there wasn’t a lot of time. It’s more time being an issue rather than anything else.”
The FA have plans in place for a parade if England beat Spain on Sunday, with the Lionesses flying home on Monday.
Injured captain Leah Williamson, who agonisingly missed the tournament, is flying to Australia and will be at the final in Sydney.
The FA are also in talks over commemorating the recent success of the Lionesses and have approval to build a statue at Wembley. “It’s something that we are looking at post-Euros, we’ve made progress on that and it would be right to have something to commemorate that success outside Wembley,” said Bullingham.
