Men's football

Representing Belgium (as manager)
FIFA World Cup
Third	2018 Russia	Team
Representing Portugal (as manager)
UEFA Nations League
Winner	2025 Germany

*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Roberto Martínez Montoliu, born on July 13, 1973, is a Spanish football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for the Portugal national team.

Martínez played as a defensive midfielder. He started his career at Real Zaragoza in Spain, where he won the Copa del Rey (a major cup competition). After a year at a smaller club, Balaguer, he moved to England to play for Wigan Athletic.

At Wigan, he was part of a group of Spanish players known as the Three Amigos. He played there for six years, which was the longest time he spent at any club. During this period, he helped Wigan win the Football League Third Division and the Football League Trophy. He later played for Motherwell in Scotland, then Walsall, and finally Swansea City in 2003. He became the team's captain and helped them get promoted to League One in 2005. He finished his playing career at Chester City in 2007.

In 2007, Martínez became a manager at Swansea City. He led them to win League One and get promoted to the Championship. In 2009, he moved back to Wigan Athletic as their manager. He helped Wigan stay in the Premier League for three seasons. In his fourth season, Wigan was relegated, but they also won the FA Cup in 2013 for the first time ever!

After that, Martínez became the manager of Everton. In his first season, Everton finished fifth in the league, which was their best finish in five years. This meant they qualified for the UEFA Europa League. In May 2016, he left Everton and became the head coach of the Belgium national team in August 2016.

Martínez led Belgium to third place in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which was their best result ever in the competition. Belgium also held the top spot in the FIFA World Rankings from 2018 to 2022. He left Belgium after the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In January 2023, he was appointed as the head coach of Portugal. He guided Portugal to win the UEFA Nations League in 2025.

Early Life and First Steps in Football

Roberto Martínez was born in Balaguer, Catalonia, Spain. He started playing football for his hometown club, Balaguer, when he was just nine years old. He played for their youth teams at every level. When he was 16, he moved to Real Zaragoza, a bigger club.

Playing Career Highlights

Starting at Real Zaragoza

Martínez first played for the Real Zaragoza B team in 1991. He spent most of his first three seasons playing for the youth teams. On June 20, 1993, he made his debut for the first team in La Liga, Spain's top league. This was on the last day of the 1992–93 season in a 2–2 draw against Atlético Madrid. He came on as a substitute in the 55th minute.

In 1994, he returned to Balaguer to play for their first team. He also helped run a football school for the club.

Moving to England with Wigan Athletic

Martínez as manager of Wigan Athletic in 2009

Dave Whelan, the Chairman of Wigan Athletic, offered Martínez the chance to move to England. He joined Wigan on a free transfer on July 25, 1995. He joined two other Spanish players, Jesús Seba and Isidro Díaz. Together, they were called the "Three Amigos."

Martínez played his first game for Wigan on August 12, 1995, against Gillingham. He even scored a goal in a 2–1 defeat. He was Wigan's top goalscorer in the 1995–96 season with 13 goals. His great performances led to him being named in the Division Three PFA Team of the Year. Fans also voted him the club's Player of the Year.

Martínez won his first trophies with Wigan in the 1996–97 season when they became Division Three Champions. He was again named in the Division Three PFA Team of the Year and signed a new four-year contract. He was also part of the Wigan team that won the Football League Trophy in 1999. He received a winner's medal even though he was injured during the final.

Time at Motherwell, Walsall, and Swansea City

After leaving Wigan in 2001, Martínez signed with Scottish club Motherwell. He played only a few games before his contract ended when the club faced financial problems.

In August 2002, he moved back to England to join Walsall. He didn't play much there. In January 2003, Martínez joined Swansea City. He quickly became the team's captain and helped them stay in the Football League on the very last day of the season. In June 2003, he signed a new contract with Swansea. In the 2004–05 season, he helped the club get promoted to League One.

In May 2006, Swansea released Martínez. He then joined Chester City on a two-year contract. However, on February 24, 2007, he returned to Swansea City as their new manager. This meant he ended his playing career at age 33 to focus on coaching.

Managerial Career Journey

Leading Swansea City to Success

As Swansea's manager, Martínez's team lost only once in eleven games. They almost made it to the play-offs in the 2006–07 season. He won his first League One Manager of the Month Award in October 2007. He won it again in December and January.

In April 2008, Martínez signed a new contract with Swansea. The club became League One Champions, earning promotion to the Championship. In May 2008, he received the League One Manager of the Year Award for leading Swansea to the title.

The 2008–09 season was Swansea's first in England's second-tier division in 24 years. Swansea's performance improved, and they lost only four games out of the next 30. Martínez also led his team to a 2–0 FA Cup win against Premier League side Portsmouth, who were the current cup holders.

Managing Wigan Athletic

Martínez often said he would only leave Swansea if he was "forced out." However, in June 2009, Wigan Athletic asked Swansea for permission to talk to him about their manager job. After several days, Martínez became Wigan's new manager on June 15, 2009. He took four of his staff with him. He explained that managing in the Premier League at the club where he started in England was too good to miss.

His first league game as Wigan manager was an away match against Aston Villa on August 15, 2009. Wigan won 2–0, which was their first opening game win in the Premier League. However, his first season at Wigan had mixed results, with big wins against teams like Chelsea and Liverpool, but also some very heavy defeats. This included a 9–1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur, which was a club record defeat for Wigan.

On October 26, 2010, Martínez faced his old club Swansea in the League Cup. Swansea fans gave him a tough welcome, but Wigan won 2–0. In June 2011, Martínez turned down an offer from Aston Villa to be their manager.

The 2011–12 season started poorly for Wigan, with eight straight defeats. Many thought relegation was certain. However, Wigan's form improved greatly towards the end of the season. They won against teams like Liverpool, Arsenal, and Manchester United. This amazing comeback, with seven wins in nine games, helped Wigan finish 15th in the league. Martínez also won his first Premier League Manager of the Month Award for April 2012.

In May 2012, Liverpool asked to speak with Martínez about their manager job, but the job eventually went to Brendan Rodgers. Martínez decided to stay at Wigan.

During the 2012–13 season, Martínez led Wigan to their most successful FA Cup campaign ever. They won the FA Cup for the first time in the club's history! Wigan reached their first ever FA Cup Final by beating Millwall 2–0 in the semi-final. They played Manchester City in the final on May 11 and won 1–0 with a goal in the 91st minute from Ben Watson.

However, just three days after winning the FA Cup, on May 14, 2013, Martínez's Wigan team was relegated from the Premier League after losing 4–1 to Arsenal.

Time at Everton

Martínez as manager of Everton in 2013

On May 28, 2013, Wigan's chairman, Dave Whelan, announced that Martínez had permission to talk to Everton about their open manager position. Whelan said Martínez felt he wasn't the right person to lead Wigan back to the Premier League.

On June 5, 2013, Everton confirmed that Martínez was their new manager, signing a four-year contract. Martínez brought four of his staff from Wigan to Everton. He promised to help Everton qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

His first Premier League game for Everton was a 2–2 draw against Norwich City. Martínez's first league win as Everton manager was against Chelsea on September 14. When Everton beat West Ham United 3–2 in their next game, Martínez became the first Everton manager to avoid defeat in his first six games.

On April 12, 2014, Martínez led Everton to a 1–0 win against Sunderland. This moved Everton to fourth place in the Premier League and set a club record of seven straight Premier League wins. Eight days later, Everton won 2–0 against Manchester United. He led the team to a fifth-place finish in the league in his first season. Martínez signed a new five-year contract after the season.

The 2014–15 season was not as successful for Everton. By March 2015, they had won only one of their last ten matches. In the Europa League, Everton reached the round of 16 but were knocked out by Dynamo Kiev.

On May 12, 2016, Martínez was sacked by Everton. The club was in 12th place with one game left. He had led them to the semi-finals of both domestic cups that season, but fans had protested and wanted him removed.

Coaching Belgium's National Team

Martínez as Belgium coach at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

On August 3, 2016, Martínez became the coach of the Belgium national team, taking over from Marc Wilmots. In his first match, Belgium lost 2–0 to his home country, Spain.

Martínez's Belgian team was the first European side to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup after beating Greece 2–1. In the group stage, his team won all their games. In the round of 16, they came back from two goals down to beat Japan 3–2. In the quarter-finals, Belgium defeated Brazil 2–1. They then lost 1–0 to France in the semi-final. Belgium defeated England 2–0 in the third-place play-off to get their best World Cup finish ever.

Under Martínez, Belgium rose to first in the FIFA World Rankings in September 2018 and stayed there until February 2021. He also set a record for most wins as Belgium's manager. However, Belgium was eliminated from Euro 2020 after losing 2–1 to Italy in the quarter-finals. He remained coach until the end of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Belgium entered the 2022 FIFA World Cup as second in the FIFA ranking. However, they were eliminated in the group stage after losing to Morocco and drawing with Croatia. Martínez resigned after the Croatia match, saying he had planned to leave Belgium after the tournament, no matter the result.

Leading Portugal's National Team

On January 9, 2023, Martínez was announced as the head coach of the Portugal national team, replacing Fernando Santos. His first game was a 4–0 home win over Liechtenstein in the Euro 2024 qualifiers. On September 11, Martínez led Portugal to their biggest victory in international history, beating Luxembourg 9–0 at home.

Martínez's Portuguese team was one of the first European sides to qualify for UEFA Euro 2024. They secured their spot quickly after a 3–2 win over Slovakia. On October 16, Portugal secured first place in their group. They finished with a perfect qualification campaign, winning all ten matches. They scored 36 goals and only let in two goals, keeping nine clean sheets. This was the first time in Portugal's history they won all their qualification matches for the UEFA European Championship.

In the Euro 2024 group, Portugal played against Georgia, Turkey, and Czechia. They won against Czechia and Turkey but lost to Georgia. Portugal still qualified for the Round of 16 as group winners, where they played against Slovenia. The game was 0–0 and went to penalties. Portugal's goalkeeper Diogo Costa saved all of Slovenia's penalties, and Portugal scored all of theirs to win. Facing France in the Quarter-finals, the game again finished 0–0 and was decided on penalties. France won 5–3, and Portugal was eliminated.

On June 9, 2025, Roberto Martinez guided Portugal to their second UEFA Nations League title after defeating the reigning European champions Spain 5–3 on penalties.

Style of Management

Martínez is known for helping Swansea City develop a style of play based on keeping possession of the ball. This style helped them win their League One title and rise to the Premier League. Later Swansea managers continued this style of football. Martínez also used a similar possession-based style at Wigan and Everton. He says his coaching ideas are influenced by the famous football philosophy of Johan Cruyff.

Many younger coaches have studied Martínez's training methods for possession-based football.

Broadcasting and Personal Life

Working as a Football Pundit

Martínez has also worked as a studio analyst for ESPN during the FIFA World Cup (in 2010 and 2014) and the UEFA European Championship (in 2012 and 2016). He was also a regular guest on Sky Sports' Spanish football show Revista de la Liga. He has also appeared on the BBC's Match of the Day. In July 2020, Martínez became a pundit for CBS Sports Network's UEFA Champions League coverage.

Family and Education

In June 2009, Martínez married his Scottish girlfriend, Beth Thomson, in Swansea. They met in Scotland in 2002 when he was playing for Motherwell. They have two daughters named Luella and Safiana.

While playing for Real Zaragoza, Martínez earned a degree in physiotherapy. He also has a special diploma in business management from Manchester Metropolitan University.

Honours and Achievements

As a Player

Real Zaragoza
- Copa del Rey: 1993–94
Wigan Athletic
- Football League Third Division: 1996–97
- Football League Trophy: 1998–99
Swansea City
- Football League Trophy: 2005–06
Individual Awards
- PFA Team of the Year: 1995–96 Third Division, 1996–97 Third Division

As a Manager

Swansea City
- Football League One: 2007–08
Wigan Athletic
- FA Cup: 2012–13
Belgium
- FIFA World Cup third place: 2018
Portugal
- UEFA Nations League: 2024–25
Individual Awards
- League One Manager of the Year: 2007–08
- Football League One Manager of the Month: October 2007, December 2007, January 2008
- Premier League Manager of the Month: April 2012
- LMA FA Cup Manager of the Year: 2012–13
- Belgian Sports Coach of the Year: 2018

Images for kids

Martínez as Belgium coach at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Martínez as manager of Wigan Athletic in 2009
Martínez as manager of Everton in 2013
Martínez as Belgium coach at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Roberto Martínez facts for kids

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