{
  "id": 9067606,
  "title": "Star coaches make their bows as Nations League returns",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/star-coaches-make-their-bows-as-nations-league-returns-9067606",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-22T02:28:44.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/sports/2026/09/22/star-coaches-make-their-bows-as-nations-league-returns"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The 2026/27 Nations League commences on Thursday, drawing attention to the new coaches set to lead their respective nations. Among the high-profile appointments are Jurgen Klopp, returning to coach Germany, and Zinedine Zidane, who takes over the France team following Didier Deschamps' retirement after a 14-year tenure. Zidane's appointment was eagerly anticipated by the French public, with Kylian Mbappe expressing his excitement in an interview with Spanish daily AS. The German manager will lead his first matches against Turkey and Belgium, followed by a game at the Stade de France against Italy. Meanwhile, Klopp will make his debut with Germany against the Netherlands and Greece. Other new coaches include Jorge Jesus for Portugal, Xavi Hernandez replacing Ronald Koeman as Netherlands coach, Roberto Mancini for Italy, Mark van Bommel for Belgium, Slaven Bilic for Croatia for the second time, and Luis de la Fuente, who remains with Spain but has his contract extended until 2032. England's Thomas Tuchel leads his team against Spain in their opening match.",
  "summary": "World Cup cycles often bring new coaches, but the 2026 cycle has seen an unusually high turnover, with 10 European nations appointing new coaches.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "New Straits Times",
        "title": "Star coaches make their bows as Nations League returns",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/star-coaches-make-their-bows-as-nations-league-returns",
        "published": "2026-09-22T01:31:08.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Star coaches make their bows as Nations League returns",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/star-coaches-make-their-bows-as-nations-league-returns-9064273",
        "published": "2026-09-22T02:28:44.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}