West Ham have announced Julen Lopetegui as their new head coach. The 57-year-old Spaniard, who finalized a deal with the Hammers earlier this month, succeeds David Moyes. Lopetegui joins on a two-year contract, with an option for a third year.
Lopetegui, previously out of a managerial role since leaving Wolves in August, expressed his enthusiasm about joining West Ham. “I feel very happy, first of all, to be part of the future of this big club,” he said. “We had other opportunities, but I am very happy that West Ham chose me because I chose West Ham too, so we are really happy about this.”
Earlier in the month, West Ham confirmed that David Moyes would leave at the end of the season. Moyes, who returned for a second stint at the club in December 2019, led the team to victory in the Europa Conference League in 2023. However, the 61-year-old Scotsman faced increasing pressure after a series of poor results, leaving the Hammers in ninth place in the Premier League and missing out on a fourth consecutive season in Europe.
Lopetegui will officially begin his role on July 1st, just in time for the start of pre-season, which includes a two-week trip to the United States for matches against Crystal Palace and Wolves. “I feel that we have a fantastic platform,” Lopetegui added. “My ambition as a coach is always to be better and better, to achieve more and bigger aims, and to encourage and improve the players, the team, and to compete because football is about this – to compete.”
The former Spain and Real Madrid coach won the Europa League with Sevilla in 2020 before moving to Molineux in November 2022, when Wolves were at the bottom of the Premier League. He managed to guide them to a 13th-place finish but became frustrated by the club’s financial situation, leading to his resignation.
West Ham’s technical director, Tim Steidten, praised Lopetegui: “Julen lives and breathes football. He thinks deeply about the game, is tactically astute, and has shown he can adapt to work in different leagues, in different countries, with national teams, and in each situation he has demonstrated his outstanding qualities.”
A former goalkeeper, Lopetegui played for Real Madrid and Barcelona and earned one cap for Spain. The club’s joint chairman, David Sullivan, added: “We believe this appointment will ensure a strong opportunity to build on the positive progress made in recent seasons, helping the club to move forward in a direction that aligns with our ambitions.”
