Top 5 Fastest Sacked Manager in Football History

In somewhat surprising news, former Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag was sacked after managing two games with Bayer Leverkusen. The Dutch manager took over the reins at the German club after Xabi Alonso left for Real Madrid. After agreeing on a deal with the club in May, fans expected the masterclass tactician to take the club forward. He became one of the fastest sacked manager in football, an unwanted record to possess in his resume. With the club having multiple departures before the start of the 2025-26 season, the Leverkusen board decided to pull the plug.

The club lost Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, and Granit Xhaka, to name a few of the superstars who sought greener pastures after ten Hag's arrival. Although the manager brought in fresh recruits, the Dutch manager lost his opening game in the Bundesliga to Hoffenheim. Afterwards, a 3-3 draw against a 10-man Werder Bremen became the final nail in the coffin for ten Hag as he's lost his job again after facing the sack against Manchester United. With all the news surrounding the timeframe he lost his job, Sportsdunia brings you the Top 5 fastest sackings in football. We go from a descending order to find the fastest sacked manager in football.

Top 5 Fastest Sacked Football Managers

5. Jorg Berger - Arminia Bielefeld: 1 game (5 days)

With over 21 managerial positions in his 39-year managerial career, Jorg Berger certainly gained a lot of experience after managing multiple clubs. In his long managerial career, his most outstanding achievement came in 1990 and 1996 when he took Eintracht Frankfurt and FC Schalke 04 to two third-place positions. However, during his time with Arminia Bielefeld, he went into the club to save them from relegation. After arriving on May 18, 2009, a 2-2 draw on the final day saw the club go down, and Berger was shown the door. He became one of the fastest sacked manager in football.

4. Luigi Del Neri - Porto: 0 games (36 days)

The Serie A Coach of the Year 2001–02 was a man who loved to take on significant challenges. Luigi Del Neri took a small-town club called Chievo to the Serie A and finished in 5th place, taking them to Europe. With all the heroics, he took over the reins of Porto after Jose Mourinho left the club following the victory in the Champions League 2004. However, Del Neri faced the sack before the season commenced, which shocked most football fans.

The club president, Jorge Pinto da Costa, blamed the manager for poor timekeeping after he missed a training session. Likewise, Empoli gave him the axe for similar reasons after Del Neri didn't manage a single game, and Porto lost a talented coach who could have given them more trophies. He became the fourth fastest sacked football manager.

3. Martin Ling - Cambridge: 0 games (9 days)

Nine days is all it took to sack Martin Ling from Cambridge. Arriving at the non-league side Cambridge in July 2009, fans expected Ling to change the club's fortunes. However, due to "irreconcilable differences" with club chairman George Rolls, he resigned from his duties, and the club sacked him in nine days. He became one of the fastest sacked manager in football, and it goes down in history. But there's a twist to the tale.

Following the sudden exit of club chairman Rolls, Ling returned 16 days after his initial appointment. Later, when he returned to the club, he stayed with Cambridge for one and a half seasons and managed a 10th-place finish.

2. Dave Bassett - Crystal Palace: 0 games (4 days)

If not for the ridiculous time the No. 1 fastest sacked football manager got the axe, Dave Bassett could have been acquiring the top spot. A legend for Wimbledon in the 1980s, he took the old club, which stayed in the fourth tier of English football, to earn a top-flight status for the London club. But during those seasons, he left for Crystal Palace in June 1984, ambitious to expand his managerial career.

But by saying, "I gave it some serious thought, but in the end, it just did not feel right. We have unfinished business, and I didn't really want to leave here," Bassett returned to Wimbledon for some unfinished business. Bassett received the honor of getting into the League Managers Association Hall of Fame 1000 Club, which makes him one of the game's top managers. Hence, he became one of the fastest football manager sacked.

1. Leroy Rosenior - Torquay United: 0 games (10 minutes)

Perhaps one of the unbreakable records in football, Leroy Rosenior, was the fastest sacked manager in football. Yes, it was as fast as 10 minutes. After managing Torquay United in the early 2000s, he led the team to a League One promotion. Later on May 17, 2007, Rosenior became the manager of Torquay United yet again after Keith Curle faced the axe. But in 10 minutes, all hell broke loose.

The club signed him up, but a consortium took over and later sacked him before he could implement his ideologies. They then appointed former Toquay United player Paul Buckle instead of the talented Rosenior. Even though it was a shocking decision, Rosenior took it like a man and often joked about those 10 minutes of his life. Thus, he takes the unwanted undisputed crown of the fastest sacked football manager.