WORLD CUP
2026

Behind every great team stands a great coach, the mastermind who never kicks a ball during the match yet shapes everything that happens on the pitch. Coaches, also called managers, decide which players start, how the team lines up, and what tactics to use against each opponent. They run training sessions, study hours of video, and plan for every situation before kick-off. During the game they pace the touchline, shout instructions, and make substitutions that can turn defeat into victory. The very best coaches do more than win matches. They invent new ways of playing that spread across the entire world and change football forever. A clever idea dreamed up on a chalkboard in one country can, within a few years, be copied on playgrounds and in stadiums everywhere. Coaches must also be teachers and psychologists, knowing exactly when to encourage a nervous youngster and when to challenge a superstar. Some are calm and quiet, others are fiery and loud, but all share a deep understanding of the game. In this comic we meet the masterminds whose ideas built champion teams and rewrote the rules of how football is played.