Terry Venables, 80; former soccer coach
Terry Venables, a charismatic and tactically innovative English soccer coach who led his national team to the European Championship semifinals in 1996 after winning trophies at club level with Barcelona and Tottenham, has died. He was 80.
The death of Mr. Venables was announced on Sunday in a statement by his family to British media, saying he died on Saturday after a long illness.
The English Football Association said Mr. Venables left behind a legacy that “captured the imagination of many and enhanced the global reputation of the English game.”
Former England captain Gary Lineker, who played as a striker under Mr. Venables at Barcelona and Tottenham, described him as “the best, most innovative coach that I had the privilege and pleasure of playing for.”
Charming, witty, and popular, Mr. Venables, who was born just outside London, played for Chelsea, Tottenham, Queens Park Rangers, and Crystal Palace — all clubs in the capital — in a 16-year senior career that included two appearances for England in the mid-1960s.
Palace and QPR were the first teams “El Tel,” as he was nicknamed, managed before he moved to Barcelona for a spell from 1984-87 where he led the team to the Spanish league title in 1985 — its first since 1974. He also led Barca to the European Cup final in 1986, where it lost to Steaua Bucharest on penalties.
During his time at the Camp Nou, Mr. Venables oversaw the sale of Argentinian great Diego Maradona to Napoli.
As Tottenham manager from 1987-91, he won the FA Cup in what proved to be his final season and then became chief executive before his relationship with then-chairman Alan Sugar gradually broke down and he was fired. Later in 1993, the BBC’s Panorama program alleged improper conduct connected with Mr. Venables’ businesses, to which he responded by threatening legal action.
Mr. Venables turned to international management and his proudest moment was coaching England from 1994-96, including at Euro 96 on home soil where a talented team — containing the mercurial Paul Gascoigne and Alan Shearer and playing in a “Christmas tree” formation — lost to Germany in a penalty shootout in the semifinals. England’s 4-1 win over the Netherlands in the group stage has gone down as one of the national team’s great performances.
“He was an unbelievable personality and character, larger than life,” former England right back Gary Neville wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “He was someone who was a players’ man, looked after his players, stood up for his players in big situations.”
Mr. Venables’ final coaching spells were back in club soccer with Palace, Middlesbrough and Leeds, though he had a brief stint as assistant to England coach Steve McClaren in 2006 only to leave after the team failed to qualify for the European Championship.