Former England manager Gareth Southgate has described receiving a knighthood for his services to football as an “amazing honour”.
Sir Gareth, who led the Three Lions to consecutive European Championship finals in 2020 and 2024 and the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, accepted the honour from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.
He becomes only the fourth England boss to be knighted, after Sir Walter Winterbottom, Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson.
Asked how it felt to be knighted, Sir Gareth said he was “more emotional than I thought I might be” and the occasion was an “amazing honour”.
He said managing his country for eight years was “an amazing privilege” but admitted he was “not missing that either”.
The 54-year-old, who is the only manager of the England men’s team to reach two major finals, resigned from the role following a 2-1 Euro final defeat to Spain in July last year.
‘We’ve broken down so many barriers’
Reflecting on his spell in charge, Sir Gareth said: “We’ve broken down so many barriers to winning.
“Ultimately, we didn’t quite get to where we wanted to, but we’re in a great position now to take things forward.”
Sir Gareth was succeeded as manager by Thomas Tuchel ahead of next year’s World Cup, when it will be 60 years since Sir Alf Ramsey’s side won the trophy in what is still the England men’s team’s only major honour.
Asked how he assessed the squad’s chances heading into the tournament, Sir Gareth said: “What I learned doing the job is it’s important that people on the outside respect the space inside, so best that I stay out of the way and let them get on with it.”
Under Sir Gareth, England ended its 55-year wait for a men’s final at Euro 2020, delayed 12 months by COVID, before being agonisingly beaten on penalties by Italy at Wembley.
A late defeat to Spain three years later saw the side again miss out on silverware.
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Sir Gareth, who was recognised for his services to football in the New Year Honours in December, took charge of 102 England matches in total to add to the 57 caps he won for the national team as a player between 1995 and 2004.
He also paid tribute to Prince William, who is president of the FA, describing him as a “genuine football fan” and an “amazing supporter” of both England and Aston Villa, who Sir Gareth played for during his 16-year career.
“He kindly thanked me for what I’d done,” he said.
