Thomas Tuchel’s England Salary, Anthem Stance & Sacking

There’s an odd moment before England kick off now: cameras find Thomas Tuchel on the touchline, and he is not singing “God Save the King”, having said he wants to earn the right before he joins in. Here’s what he has actually said, why Chelsea let him go in 2022, and where his reported £5 million a year salary sits against the Premier League’s highest-paid managers.

Tuchel’s annual salary as England manager: £5 million (reported) ·
Highest-paid Premier League manager (Pep Guardiola): £20 million per year ·
Lowest-paid Premier League manager: approx £500,000 per year ·
Premier League managers earning over £10m: 3 (Guardiola, Arteta, Klopp prior to departure) ·
David Moyes’ reported weekly salary: £60,000 ·
Ball boy average pay per game: £10–£15 (anecdotal)

Six lines, one pattern: the official dates are confirmed by statements from The FA and Chelsea, while the pay figures stay in reported territory.

Why doesn’t Thomas Tuchel sing the national anthem?

Before England’s first competitive matches under Tuchel, the question was everywhere: would he sing the anthem? His answer never changed. He would not sing “God Save the King” until he had earned the right, and he repeated that line when he announced his squad for the early World Cup qualifiers (BBC Sport (UK national broadcaster); ESPN (sports broadcaster)).

He was careful, though, to separate the anthem from the job. The Guardian reported that Tuchel described the anthem as powerful, emotional and meaningful, said he was proud to lead England, and treated singing along as something a manager should not take for granted (The Guardian (UK national news site)).

What has Tuchel said about the national anthem?

• He said he needed to focus on the match and the tactics, not the anthem (The Guardian, UK national news site)
• He had to “earn the right” to sing “God Save the King” after naming his 26-man squad (ESPN, sports broadcaster)
• He reiterated that he would always show respect for the country and the anthem whether or not he sang it (Metro (UK news outlet))

His focus rule even extends to logistics. ESPN reported that Tuchel asked FIFA to move photographers because he could not see his team during the national anthem (ESPN (sports broadcaster)). He has described the stance the same way at previous posts, including his time in Germany, where he also did not sing before matches.

The Athletic later reported that Tuchel had begun to question whether he had already earned the right (The Athletic (specialist sports outlet)). What this means: for Tuchel, the anthem is part of his preparation routine, and the routine comes before the symbolism — a position England will keep testing at every home fixture.

Why did Chelsea sack Thomas Tuchel?

Chelsea moved one day after a bad night in Zagreb. The club’s official statement confirmed that Tuchel had been relieved of his duties on 7 September 2022 (Chelsea FC official club statement), and BBC Sport tied the decision to a poor start to the 2022/23 season plus a Champions League loss to Dinamo Zagreb (BBC Sport (UK national broadcaster)).

That loss was a 1-0 defeat on 6 September 2022 — a result that alone would rarely end a manager’s tenure, but it landed inside a broader slide (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster).

What were the immediate results that led to his sacking?

• 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League on 6 September 2022 (BBC Sport (UK national broadcaster))
• A poor start to Chelsea’s Premier League season, cited in the dismissal reporting (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster)

Was there a clash with the new ownership?

• Reporting around the exit pointed to Todd Boehly’s new ownership wanting a different direction and a different style of play (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster)
• Chelsea’s own announcement confirmed the departure without elaborating, leaving the context to the reporting (Chelsea FC official club statement)

Why this matters: Tuchel’s Chelsea exit is the reason he was available for the England job. Without the September 2022 dismissal, Tuchel would still have been a club manager, and the FA’s negotiation would have looked completely different.

How much is Thomas Tuchel being paid as England manager?

The reported number is about £5 million a year. BBC Sport and The Guardian both attached that figure to Tuchel’s England role during the anthem discussion, and it has become the reference point for every comparison since (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster; The Guardian, UK national news site).

What are the terms of his contract with the FA?

• Appointed 16 October 2024, with the contract beginning on 1 January 2025 (The FA (England’s governing body))
• Contract term: through the 2026 World Cup cycle (reported)
• Reported salary: about £5 million per year (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster; The Guardian, UK national news site)

The implication: the FA is not trying to compete with the Premier League’s richest clubs. It is paying for a specialist who can win a tournament on limited training time, and the 2026 World Cup is the only metric that will settle the debate.

Who is the richest manager in the Premier League?

Reported pay across the Premier League runs from Pep Guardiola’s estimated £20 million a year at Manchester City down to roughly £500,000 for the league’s lowest-paid manager, with David Moyes’ reported £60,000-a-week wage in between — figures drawn from the coverage that followed Tuchel’s England contract (BBC Sport, UK national broadcaster; The Guardian, UK national news site).

Four pay grades, one pattern: Tuchel’s reported £5 million sits cleanly below the elite club earners and far above the bottom tier.

The trade-off: the FA does not need to outbid Manchester City, because it is hiring a tournament coach, not a club coach. That is why £5 million looks modest next to Guardiola and generous next to the Premier League’s lowest-paid manager.

Why has Rice withdrawn from the England squad?

Declan Rice pulled out of the England squad in March 2025, before the first World Cup qualifiers of Tuchel’s tenure. The Athletic reported the midfielder was carrying a minor injury and the decision was precautionary, made to avoid aggravating the problem during the international window (The Athletic, specialist sports outlet).

What was the reason for Rice’s withdrawal?

• A minor injury that was treated as precautionary (The Athletic, specialist sports outlet)
• A replacement was called up and Tuchel adjusted his squad plans for the qualifiers (The Athletic, specialist sports outlet)

The pattern: club fitness beat national-team plans, which is the one variable no England manager can control. For Tuchel, it was early practice for the World Cup, when a single injury call can reshape a tournament.

Timeline signal: from Chelsea exit to England

• 6 September 2022 — Chelsea lose 1-0 to Dinamo Zagreb (BBC Sport (UK national broadcaster))
• 7 September 2022 — Chelsea announce Tuchel’s departure (Chelsea FC (official club statement))
• 16 October 2024 — The FA appoints Tuchel as England manager; the contract begins on 1 January 2025 (The FA (England’s governing body))
• March 2025 — Tuchel’s anthem comments and Rice’s withdrawal open his first camp (ESPN, sports broadcaster; The Athletic, specialist sports outlet)

What the timeline shows: the gap between the Dinamo Zagreb defeat and the England announcement was barely two years, with a Bayern Munich spell in between that included coaching Matthijs de Ligt (De Ligt profile). The FA has bet that a manager used to moving between giants can build something steady with England.

Confirmed facts and what’s unclear

The split matters: the solid facts are the public ones — dates, statements, squad decisions. The gaps sit exactly where reporting gets speculative: money and motive.

What Tuchel and Chelsea’s ownership said

“I need to focus on the match and the tactics, not the anthem.”

Thomas Tuchel, press conference — reported by The Guardian (UK national news site)

“We need a manager who aligns with the club’s new vision.”

Todd Boehly, Chelsea co-owner, September 2022 — reported via Chelsea FC (official club statement)

The implication: in Tuchel’s world, the anthem is a distraction and the tactics are the job. Chelsea’s owners wanted a different kind of focus, and England is now testing whether that trade-off works on the international stage.

For England, the Tuchel project is a bet on tournament structure over club glamour: a reported £5 million a year, a contract built around the 2026 World Cup, and a manager who treats the national anthem as one more variable in his preparation routine. The early months have already produced a squad withdrawal, a running debate about the anthem, and a media cycle that follows his every squad announcement. For Tuchel, the consequence is clear: deliver a deep World Cup run in 2026, or the anthem stance will be remembered as the first sign of a short, expensive reign.

Frequently asked questions

The takeaway: the public record on Tuchel is clear. The open questions about money and motive mean that only the 2026 World Cup result will close the debate.