Coordinates: 51°28′36″N 0°12′50″W / 51.4767°N 0.2138°W / 51.4767; -0.2138

Fulham
Fulham Palace, the former residence of the Bishop of London
Fulham  Fulham shown within Greater London
OS grid reference	TQ245765
- Charing Cross	3.7 mi (6.0 km)  NE
London borough	Hammersmith & Fulham
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LONDON
Postcode district	SW6
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
EU Parliament	London
UK Parliament	Chelsea and Fulham
London Assembly	West Central
List of places: UK • England • London

Fulham ( /ˈfʊləm/) is an area of southwest London in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, SW6 (the successor to the Metropolitan Borough of Fulham) located 3.7 miles (6.0 km) south west of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the Thames, between Putney and Chelsea. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.^[1] Fulham was formerly the seat of the diocese of "Fulham and Gibraltar", and Fulham Palace served as the former official home of the Bishop of London, (now a museum), the grounds of which are now divided between public allotments and an elegant botanical garden.

Having been through many transformations in its history, today it is a green London area within very close reach of many famously extravagant places such as Chelsea and Kensington and this is reflected in the high local house prices. It was included within Savills' 2007 list of "prime" London areas.^[2] Two Premier League football clubs, Fulham and Chelsea, are situated in Fulham. The former Lillie Bridge Grounds (which hosted the second FA Cup Final and the first ever amateur boxing matches) was also in Fulham.

History[link]

Putney Bridge with Fulham on the left

Fulham, or in its earliest form "Fullanham", is uncertainly stated to signify "the place" either "of fowls" or "of mud" (which probably had to do with the fact that the River Thames would flood it periodically), or alternatively, "land in the crook of a river bend belonging to a man named Fulla". The manor is said to have been given to Bishop Erkenwald about the year 691 for himself and his successors in the see of London, and Holinshed relates that the Bishop of London was lodging in his manor place in 1141 when Geoffrey de Mandeville, riding out from the Tower of London, took him prisoner. During the Commonwealth the manor was temporarily out of the bishops' hands, being sold to Colonel Edmund Harvey.

There is no record of the first erection of a parish church, but the first known rector was appointed in 1242, and a church probably existed a century before this. The earliest part of the church demolished in 1881, however, did not date farther back than the 15th century.

In 879 Danish invaders, sailing up the Thames, wintered at Fulham and Hammersmith. Near the former wooden Putney Bridge, built in 1729 and replaced in 1886, the earl of Essex threw a bridge of boats across the river in 1642 in order to march his army in pursuit of Charles I, who thereupon fell back on Oxford. Margravine Road recalls the existence of Brandenburg House, a riverside mansion built by Sir Nicholas Crispe in the time of Charles I, used as the headquarters of General Fairfax in 1647 during the civil wars, and occupied in 1792 by the margrave of Brandenburg-Anspach and Bayreuth and his wife, and in 1820 by Caroline, consort of George IV.

The Johnny Haynes stand at Craven Cottage, home of Fulham Football Club.

Fulham during the 18th century had a reputation of debauchery, becoming a sort of "Las Vegas retreat" for the wealthy of London, where there was much gambling and prostitution.

Fulham remained a working class area for the first half of the twentieth century, but was subject to extensive restoration between the Second World War and the 1980s. Today, Fulham is one of the most expensive parts of London, and therefore the United Kingdom; average actual sale price of all property (both houses and flats) sold in the SW6 area in September 2007 was £639,973.^[3]

The link with debauchery and corruption remains however. The latest edition (2008) of the Chambers Dictionary defines a fulham as 'a die loaded at the corner to ensure that certain numbers are thrown (also full'am or full'an). Prob the place name 'Fulham' in London.' The OED distinguishes between a high fulham which was loaded so as to ensure a cast of 4, 5, or 6; and a low fulham, so as to ensure a cast of 1, 2, or 3). It also cites Arthur Conan Doyle's usage in 1889 in Micah Clarke xxx. 316 "There is no loading of the dice, or throwing of fulhams."

Politics[link]

Fulham is part of the Chelsea and Fulham parliamentary seat which is currently held by Conservative Greg Hands. Fulham was formerly a part of the Hammersmith and Fulham parliamentary constituency which was dissolved in 2010 to form the current seat which is one of the most, if not the most, affluent and prestigious constituency seats in the United Kingdom.

Fulham has in the past been a politically significant part of the country, having been the scene of two major parliamentary by-elections in the 20th century. In 1933, the Fulham East by-election became known as the "peace by-election".

In 1986, Fulham experienced another by-election following the death of Conservative MP Martin Stevens. Labour's Nick Raynsford gained the constituency on a 10% swing — one of the first elections that heralded the slick, modern campaigning New Labour techniques that would become renowned. Posters announcing that "Nick Raynsford lives here" adorned thousands of windows in the constituency — a reference to the fact that Labour's candidate was a long-time local, while the Tory was resident outside of the constituency.

Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea F.C.

Fulham voters have, however, been leaning towards the Conservatives since the 1960s as the area underwent huge demographic change: the tightly-packed terraces which had housed working-class families employed in the heavy industry that dominated Fulham's riverside being rapidly replaced with young professionals.

In the 2005 General Election, Conservative Greg Hands won the Hammersmith and Fulham Parliamentary seat from Labour, polling 45.4% against Labour's 35.2%, a 7.3% swing.

In the 2010 General Election, Greg Hands stood and was elected for the newly-formed safe Conservative Chelsea and Fulham (UK Parliament constituency).

In 2006, the voters returned 33 Conservative and 13 Labour councillors. In 2010 the voters elected 31 Conservative and 15 Labour Councillors to represent them.

Culture and entertainment[link]

There is a cinema complex as part of the Fulham Broadway Centre. Notable restaurant the River Café is in Fulham, alongside the headquarters of architect Richard Rogers and the London Oratory School. Fulham Town Hall built in 1888 in the classical renaissance is now used as a popular venue for concerts and dances, especially its Grand Hall.

The area is home to the Fulham Football Club stadium Craven Cottage and the Chelsea Football Club stadium Stamford Bridge and the various flats and entertainment centres built into it. This includes Marco's, a restaurant owned and operated by chef Marco Pierre White.

Famously exclusive sports club, the Hurlingham Club, is also located within Fulham. With members having included British monarchs, the waiting list for membership currently averages over fifteen years.^[4] There is a public swimming pool in Fulham which is attached to the Virgin Active gym complex on Lillie Road, which also hosts a number of tennis courts. Tennis can also be found on Eel Brooke Common. Hurlingham Park's tennis courts are used as netball courts and tennis nets are taken down and so restricting access to the courts for tennis. Hurlingham Park hosts the annual Polo in the Park tournament, which has become a recent feature of the area. The Hurlingham Club is the historic home of polo in the United Kingdom. Rugby is played on Eel Brooke Common and South Park.

The area, like other comparable areas of London, is home to a number of pubs and gastropubs. The White Horse in Parsons Green is colloquially known by many as the "Sloaney Pony",^[5] a reference to the "Sloane Rangers" who frequent it. Other popular pubs include the Durrell in Fulham Road, the Mitre on Bishops Road, the Duke on the Green and Aragon House both by Parsons Green.

The Harwood Arms, behind Fulham Broadway, is the only pub in London to receive a Michelin Star, this fresh entry to the Michelin Guide looks to take diners to a “rural haven in the middle of Fulham”.

Fulham Broadway has undergone considerable pedestrianisation and is home to a number of cafes, bars and salons. The largest supermarket in Fulham, Waitrose, is located by Fulham Broadway.

Fulham has an abundance of parks and open spaces of which Bishop's Park, Fulham Palace Gardens, Hurlingham Park, South Park, Eel Brook Common and Parsons Green are the largest. Most of the residential roads in Fulham are tree lined, often by houses painted in different pastel shades.

Fulham has appeared in numerous films including The Omen and The L-Shaped Room. Fulham Broadway tube station was used in Sliding Doors.

Fulham is home to a number of schools particularly independent pre-preparatory and preparatory schools.

The corner of Lillie Road by Munster Road hosts a number of boutique antique shops, which specialise in upmarket antiques. New Kings Road is host to a number of exclusive interior shops and galleries particularly as it merges with Kings Road, Chelsea and goes through Parsons Green.

Munstervillage has been coined as a name for the tree-lined roads, in which Victorian and Edwardian houses are situated, that run off Munster Road which is a large residential road off Fulham Road in the northern end of Parsons Green. Munster Road has since become home to a number of organic food shops, coffee bars and restaurants.

Studio 106 Art Gallery holds regular exhibitions and workshops.

Transport[link]

Putney Bridge tube station entrance

Fulham nestles in a loop of the Thames across the river from Barnes and Putney. It is on the Wimbledon branch of the District Line of the tube — Fulham's tube stations are Putney Bridge, Parsons Green and Fulham Broadway.

Nearest places[link]

Fulham Railway Bridge at low tide

• Chelsea (to the east of Fulham)
• Battersea
• Hammersmith (to the north-west of Fulham)
• Earls Court
• West Brompton
• Kensington (to the north of Fulham)
• Walham Green (Moore Park Estate)
• Sands End (Imperial Wharf)
• Putney (to the south of Fulham, across the Thames)
• Roehampton
• West Kensington
• Barnes
• Shepherd's Bush
• Wandsworth
• Southfields
• Wimbledon
• Notting Hill
• Chiswick
• White City

Notable people from Fulham[link]

• Example (born June 20, 1982)

See also[link]

• Metropolitan Borough of Fulham

References[link]

External links[link]

London/Hammersmith and Fulham travel guide from Wikitravel

• FulhamSW6.com Local news and information for the Fulham area
• Fulham - 1911 Encyclopædia article
• Museum of Fulham Palace on www.aboutbritain.com
• BBC Guide to Hammersmith, Fulham and Chiswick
• Bishop of Fulham's website
• Fulham & Hammersmith Historical Society
• Hammersmith and Fulham Labour Party.
• Greg Hands MP - Website of the Member of Parliament for Hammersmith and Fulham
• Cllr. Stephen Cowan (Lab) - Leader of the Opposition
• London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham
• The Borough Guide from the Borough Council
• Hammersmith, Fulham and Putney, by Geraldine Edith Mitton and John Cunningham Geikie, 1903, from Project Gutenberg
• St John's Church Fulham Website - History

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

v t e London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Districts Brook Green College Park East Acton Fulham Hammersmith Hurlingham Old Oak Common Parsons Green Sands End Shepherd's Bush Walham Green West Kensington White City Attractions BBC Television Centre Bush Theatre Craven Cottage football stadium Fulham Palace Hammersmith Apollo Linford Christie Stadium Loftus Road (football stadium) Lyric Theatre Olympia Leighton House Museum O2 Shepherds Bush Empire Queen's Club Stamford Bridge (stadium) Parks and open spaces Bishops Park Eel Brook Common Hurlingham Park Normand Park Ravenscourt Park Shepherd's Bush Common South Park Wormholt Park Wormwood Scrubs Constituencies Chelsea and Fulham Hammersmith Bridges Battersea Railway Bridge Fulham Railway Bridge Hammersmith Bridge Putney Bridge Wandsworth Bridge Tube and rail stations Barons Court East Acton Fulham Broadway Goldhawk Road Hammersmith (Hammersmith & City and Circle lines) Hammersmith (Piccadilly and District lines) Imperial Wharf railway station Parsons Green Putney Bridge Ravenscourt Park Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush Market West Kensington White City Wood Lane Other topics People Public art Schools

Roy Hodgson

Personal information
Full name	Roy Hodgson
Date of birth	(1947-08-09) 9 August 1947 (age 64)[1]
Place of birth	Croydon, England[1]
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	England (manager)
Youth career
1963–1965	Crystal Palace
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1965–1966	Crystal Palace	0	(0)
1966–1969	Tonbridge Angels
1969–1971	Gravesend & Northfleet	59	(1)
1971–1972	Maidstone United
1972–1973	Ashford Town
1973–1974	Berea Park
1974–1976	Carshalton Athletic
Teams managed
1976–1980	Halmstad
1982	Bristol City
1982	Oddevold
1983–1984	Örebro
1985–1989	Malmö FF
1990–1992	Neuchâtel Xamax
1992–1995	Switzerland
1995–1997	Internazionale
1997–1998	Blackburn Rovers
1999	Internazionale
1999–2000	Grasshopper
2000–2001	Copenhagen
2001	Udinese
2002–2004	United Arab Emirates
2004–2005	Viking
2006–2007	Finland
2007–2010	Fulham
2010–2011	Liverpool
2011–2012	West Bromwich Albion
2012–	England
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Roy Hodgson (born 9 August 1947) is an English former footballer, who is the current manager of the England national football team.

Hodgson, who has managed sixteen different teams in eight countries, guided the Switzerland national team to the last 16 of the 1994 World Cup and qualification for Euro 1996; Switzerland had not qualified for a major tournament since the 1960s. From 2006 to 2007, he managed the Finland national team, guiding them to their highest ever FIFA ranking of 33rd place, and coming close to qualifying for a major tournament for the first time in their history. He has been the beaten finalist in the UEFA Cup and the Europa League. Hodgson has also coached many notable club sides, including Internazionale, Blackburn Rovers, Grasshoppers, FC Copenhagen, Udinese, Fulham, Liverpool and West Brom. Hodgson served several times as a member of UEFA's technical study group at the European Championships, and was also a member of the FIFA technical study group at the 2006 World Cup.^[2] Hodgson speaks five languages and has worked as a television pundit in several of the countries in which he has coached.^[3]

On 1 May 2012, Hodgson was appointed as manager of the England national team, officially assuming his duties on 14 May.

Early life[link]

Hodgson was born in Croydon, Surrey.^[4] His mother was a baker in the town, and his father, who was an Everton fan, originally from Walton, Liverpool, worked in a chemical factory.^{[citation needed]} Hodgson's family lived in the same building as Steve Kember, one of Hodgson's schoolmates at John Ruskin Grammar School.^[4][5] The two played on the school football team, a side which also included Lennie Lawrence.^[5] Bob Houghton, who would go on to play a prominent part in Hodgson's career, joined the school in the sixth form.^[5]

Playing career[link]

Hodgson was a moderately successful youth player with Crystal Palace, but was never able to break into the first team.^[4] After leaving Crystal Palace he played non-League football for several years with Tonbridge Angels and Gravesend & Northfleet.^[6] At the age of 23 he completed training to become a fully qualified coach.^[7] He then joined Maidstone United, where he played and also served as assistant manager to Bob Houghton.^[5] In 1972 after a year at Maidstone he moved to Ashford Town,^[6] while also working as a P.E. teacher at Alleyn's School in south London.^[7] The following year he moved to Pretoria, South Africa to play for Berea Park F.C. despite the sporting boycott of South Africa in effect at the time. While in South Africa he also coached a Northern Transvaal under-13 team which included future USA-international Roy Wegerle and future Arcadia Shepherds F.C. and Moroka Swallows F.C. player Noel Cousins.^{[citation needed]} In 1974 Hodgson returned to England for his final playing spell, joining Carshalton Athletic.^[6] Again he supported himself by teaching, this time at Monks Hill Comprehensive.^[5]

Managerial career[link]

Early career[link]

Hodgson started his managerial career in 1976 at Swedish top division side Halmstad, having been recommended by then Malmö FF manager Bob Houghton.^[5] Hodgson spent five years at Halmstads, winning the league championship in 1976 and 1979. His success with Halmstad in 1976 is considered one of the biggest surprises of all time in Swedish football.^[8] The year before, Halmstad had struggled against relegation, and before the 1976 campaign began they were almost universally tipped for relegation. Hodgson himself says that "my greatest achievement would have to be the water-into-wine job at Halmstads BK."^[8] Early in his career, he was dubbed the nicest man in the world.^[9]

In 1980, he moved to Bristol City in his native England, where he was assistant manager and later manager. Due to the club's financial problems he was largely unsuccessful and was sacked after four months in charge.^[10] In 1983, Hodgson moved back to Sweden to take over Oddevold and then Örebro.^[10] In 1985, he took over at Malmö FF, which he led to five consecutive league championships, two Swedish championships (at the time the Swedish championship was decided through play-offs) and two Swedish Cups. Due to his successful time at Malmö, Hodgson is still highly appreciated by the club's fans who have unofficially named a section of the new Swedbank Stadion "Roy's Hörna" (Roy's Corner).^[11] His greatest continental achievement at Malmö was knocking the Italian champions Internazionale out of the European Cup, winning 1–0 at home and drawing 1–1 at the San Siro. Hodgson continues to be held in high regard at Malmö where he is known as "Royson".^[12] His period as manager of the club is seen^{[by whom?]} as one of the best in the club's history.

Malmö offered Hodgson a lifetime contract, but he declined, saying later that "moving to another place seemed exciting. The decision was also financial. Swedish taxes were so high that even if you were being paid reasonable money, after losing 65% in tax there wasn't a lot left."^[8] Hodgson moved to Swiss side Neuchâtel Xamax in 1990. He led Xamax to European victories over Celtic and Real Madrid.^[13]

His early coaching career was closely linked to that of his friend Bob Houghton; they worked together at Maidstone, Stranraer and Bristol City, and they both worked in Swedish football at the same time. The pair are credited with transforming Swedish football, bringing in zonal marking for the first time.^[14]

Switzerland[link]

Hodgson took over as manager of the Switzerland national team from Uli Stielike on 26 January 1992.^[15] Stielike had been the first Swiss coach to have a winning record,^[15] winning 13 of the 25 games he was in charge. As Hodgson was succeeding Stielike at the national level, Stielike took over the job Hodgson had just vacated at club level with Swiss Super League side Neuchâtel Xamax.

Hodgson took the Schweizer Nati to the 1994 World Cup, losing only one game during qualification, from a group that included Italy and Portugal. The Swiss took four points off Italy, who, managed by the successful former coach Arrigo Sacchi, went on to make it to the World Cup final and lose only on penalties. In the game in Italy, the Swiss were at one stage leading 2–0 before being pegged back to 2–2. This was Switzerland's first World Cup since 1966. At the 1994 World Cup, the Swiss finished runners-up in their group, qualifying for the Round of 16 where they lost to Spain.

The Swiss easily qualified for Euro 1996, but Hodgson left immediately after qualification, on 15 November 1995, to join Italian club Internazionale. He had in fact been doing both jobs from October of that year.^{[citation needed]} Without Hodgson, the Swiss had a difficult time at Euro 1996 losing to the Netherlands and Scotland. Switzerland finished bottom of their group with only one point from three matches.

At their peak while managed by Hodgson, Switzerland were rated the third best international side in the world, according to the FIFA World Rankings.^[8]

Internazionale[link]

Before the European Championships, Hodgson joined Italian Serie A giants Internazionale, where he worked from 1995 to 1997. With significant investment, he presided over a rebuilding phase. Inter had finished 13th and sixth in the seasons prior to his arrival. After a terrible start to the season, Hodgson was brought in and guided the club to seventh place in the 1995–96 season, qualifying for the UEFA Cup. The 1996–97 season saw Hodgson leave Inter after 14 wins, 13 draws and five defeats in Serie A, with Inter placed 3rd in the league, and he was replaced by Luigi Simoni whose side finished second in the league in the 1997–98 season and won the UEFA Cup. In 2009 Hodgson recalled his time at Inter: "We lacked stars, apart from Paul Ince. It wasn't the Inter we see today of household names. They weren't the best technically but physically they were like machines. The Premier League is like that now, but back then Italy was far ahead."^[8]

Hodgson managed to get his Inter team, containing Javier Zanetti, Youri Djorkaeff and Ince, through to the 1997 UEFA Cup Final where they played Schalke 04. Given that Inter had a recent history of winning UEFA Cup finals, with victories in both 1990 and 1994, the Italian side started as favourites. When the German underdogs won the final in Milan on penalties, Inter fans pelted Hodgson with coins and lighters.^[16]

Hodgson later admitted that, throughout his one-and-a-half seasons at Inter, there had been regular speculation that he would get the sack, but he insisted he had had the support of the owners.^[17] The directors did support him in a disagreement that he had with Roberto Carlos whilst at the club. Hodgson wanted to exploit Carlos' attacking flair by playing him in an advanced position but Carlos was adamant in his desire to play as a left back, the position that he held when playing for Brazil and to which he felt best suited.^[18] Carlos told FourFourTwo magazine in May 2005 that he spoke to club president Massimo Moratti at the time "to see if he could sort things out and it soon became clear that the only solution was to leave."^[18] Carlos subsequently departed for Real Madrid in 1996.

Blackburn Rovers[link]

In the 1997 close season, Hodgson was tempted by Jack Walker to become manager of Blackburn Rovers. Rovers had finished 13th the previous season — only two seasons after winning the title — and had been in danger of relegation. Manager Ray Harford had quit on 25 October 1996 with Blackburn winless, bottom of the Premier League and just knocked out of the Football League Cup by Division Two underdogs Stockport County. Manager Tony Parkes had been put in charge for the rest of the season, and had overseen an improvement in league form to secure survival, but it was clear that chairman Walker wanted a more experienced man to build a side capable of regaining the form of a few years earlier,^{[citation needed]} and Hodgson accepted the offer to take over.

In the 1997–98 season, his first season in charge, Blackburn finished sixth, qualifying for the UEFA Cup and appearing to be in the ascendancy, especially as they had been outsiders in the title race for more than half of the season and Hodgson had been voted Premier League Manager of the Month on two occasions; however, the team's form collapsed dramatically in the second half of the season, and it was only on the last day of the season that they secured a UEFA place.^[19]

Hodgson's second season with Blackburn did not match the relative success of the first, due to numerous injuries,^[20] dressing room unrest, the failure to find an adequate replacement for departed central defender Colin Hendry,^[21] and a succession of poor buys – notably the £7.5 million Kevin Davies. As a result, Blackburn had a disastrous start to the season and Hodgson was sacked on November 21, 1998, with the club bottom of the league table.^[22] As Hodgson later explained, Blackburn's owner gave him the chance to resign honourably, but he refused to do so, leaving the club with no option but to sack him: "To Blackburn's honour, Jack Walker wanted me to resign, he wanted to still pay for the rest of my contract. He said, 'Why don't you resign? You've had enough, it's not working out.' I refused to do that, arrogant of course as I was in those days. I thought if they stuck with me I'd save them from relegation. I do think that the players were very much still with me, so I couldn't resign because that would be a suggestion that in some way I was doing something or something was happening which I didn't see to be the case or the truth. I gave him no choice but to sack me".^[23] His final game was a home defeat by Southampton.^[22][24]

Hodgson later complained that his failure at Blackburn tarnished his reputation in England, whilst his record on the continent should have made him comparable to Sir Alex Ferguson: "Of course, my track record, if people bothered to study it, would put me in the same category as [Sir Alex] Ferguson enjoys today, but people don't talk about what I've done outside England", he says. "Here, they just talk about Blackburn Rovers, but that's just a very small part of a 26-year career. To most English journalists it's the only part. I've got an excellent track record in Sweden, Switzerland, Italy and in Denmark, where FC Copenhagen was my last job before I went to Udinese. We won the league there by seven points. Admittedly, the fact that I walked out and went to Italy to some extent tarnished that reputation..."^[25]

Return to Inter, Grasshopper[link]

In 1999, Hodgson was shortlisted to become the next manager of the Austrian national team but the role went instead to Otto Barić.^[10] Hodgson then had a brief second stint as caretaker at Inter before returning to Switzerland to coach Grasshopper for a season. In 2000, Hodgson was one of three candidates to take over as England manager;^[10] however, after having agreed to move to FC Copenhagen prior to the FA offering him a contract, he was obliged to refuse any offer and the job went to Sven-Göran Eriksson.

Copenhagen, Udinese[link]

Hodgson moved to Denmark and became manager of F.C. Copenhagen, where he proved an instant success, taking a team that had finished seventh and eighth in the two previous seasons, and winning the Superliga championship in the 2000–01 season – the club's first championship since 1993. In 2001, he left Copenhagen to move to Serie A side Udinese. With the club five points above the relegation zone, Hodgson was fired after just four months after allegedly stating that he regretted taking up the post.^[26] Newspapers quoted him saying: "Obviously I'm very happy to be back at this level of football, but I could have chosen a better club to come back to. It's an extremely strange club." Hodgson denied making the comments^[27] but later claimed that he wanted to leave so was happy to be sacked.^[25]

United Arab Emirates[link]

Hodgson took over as manager of the United Arab Emirates in April 2002,^[28] managing the senior and Olympic sides.^[29] He was sacked in January 2004 after a fifth-placed finish in the 2003 Gulf Cup of Nations.^[10] Speaking of his time as manager of the United Arab Emirates, Hodgson said: "That was a period where I didn't know where my career was going. But all these experiences enrich you and it was good to know I could get my message to players who many say are uncoachable. It's hard work; they're basically lazy. But I had them drilled and pressuring opponents almost like an English team. Most coaches who go there are just fannying around, but it's not my nature."^[8]

Viking[link]

In May 2004, Hodgson moved to Norwegian club Viking.^[30] The club had finished fifth in the season before Hodgson took over, but finished ninth under Hodgson in their first season in a new stadium, Viking Stadion. Following a spell at the top of the table, Viking finished fifth in the 2005 season.

Finland[link]

Hodgson narrowly failed to reach UEFA Euro 2008 with Finland, a country who have never qualified for a major tournament.^[31] Although Hodgson's win ratio of just 27.3% was the worst of any Finland manager since 2000, all six of his wins came in official qualifying matches allowing Finland to come fourth in their group with a respectable 24 points,^[32] missing out on qualification by three points.^[13] Indeed, Finland still had a chance to qualify in their last match. Hodgson's Finland were praised for well organized defending but criticized for inefficient attacking – five of Finland's 14 qualification games ended in 0–0 draws. Hodgson's contract expired at the end of November 2007, and although the Finnish FA expressed their willingness to extend it, he decided to move on.^[33] Prior to taking up an ambassadorial role at Inter, Hodgson was linked with the vacant Republic of Ireland manager's job.^[34] He was also considered an outside candidate to replace Steve McClaren as England manager,^[35] having been linked previously to the job after the departures of Glenn Hoddle and Kevin Keegan,^[28] and given his international management record and nationality.

Fulham[link]

On 28 December 2007, in a surprise appointment,^[36] Hodgson accepted the post of manager at struggling Premier League team Fulham, with his contract beginning on 30 December 2007.^[37] He initially endured a run of very poor results with the club, including being knocked out of the FA Cup on penalties after two draws against League One side Bristol Rovers. Apparently certainties for relegation to the Championship, Fulham picked up just nine points from Hodgson's first thirteen league games. However, a run of twelve points from the last five games of the season, including a 3–2 win over Manchester City after being 2–0 down with twenty minutes remaining, secured the Cottagers' survival on the final day of the season.^[38]

In the 2008–09 season, Hodgson led Fulham to unprecedented success, guiding his side to seventh place in the Premier League, the club's highest ever finish, and ensuring qualification for the new UEFA Europa League.^[39] There were calls for Hodgson to be given the Premier League Manager of the Year award,^[40] and he received much praise for the signings of Mark Schwarzer, Andy Johnson and Brede Hangeland, and for the improvement in Bobby Zamora's performances.^[41] Hodgson's spell at Fulham greatly revived his reputation in England after his time in charge of Blackburn over a decade earlier, with renewed speculation linking him to the England job should Fabio Capello have left.^[42]

In the 2009–10 season, Hodgson enjoyed an impressive run in the Europa League. The club's campaign, which started in July 2009, featured impressive performances in the group stage, including defeating Basel at the hostile St. Jakob-Park in the final group game to qualify for the knockout stage at the expense of the Swiss club. In the following rounds, Fulham went on to eliminate holders Shakhtar, Italian runners-up Juventus and German champions Wolfsburg. The victory against Juventus was especially memorable as Fulham came back from 4–1 down on aggregate to win the tie 5–4. On 29 April 2010, Hodgson guided Fulham to their first major European final in their 130 year history, winning the home leg 2–1 to gain a 2–1 aggregate victory over Hamburg in the Europa League semi final.^[43] In the Premier League they finished 12th.

In May 2010, Hodgson was voted the 2010 LMA Manager of the Year by a record margin. Hodgson received the award after a poll of coaches, including managers from the top four leagues in England.^[44] Two days later, his Fulham side lost the club's first European final 2–1 to Atlético Madrid of Spain in Hamburg.^[45]

On 30 June 2010, the Liverpool Echo reported that Hodgson would be named as the new Liverpool manager after the club had agreed a £2 million compensation deal with Fulham.^[46] The announcement came after weeks of speculation following the departure of Rafael Benítez.

Liverpool[link]

On 1 July 2010, Hodgson was appointed as manager of Liverpool, signing a three-year contract.^[47] The appointment came against the backdrop of an unexpected candidacy bid from former Liverpool striker and manager and current club ambassador Kenny Dalglish.^[48] Dalglish's application was rejected by the club, who publicly never gave a reason for their decision but it was suggested that he had been away from management for too long.^[49] Instead, Hodgson was chosen as the candidate that could use his extensive experience in management 'to steady the ship'.^[50][51][52] With the club up for sale at the time, Liverpool were likely to face some turbulent times, but Hodgson's appointment met with mixed reactions from fans, particularly after Dalglish's interest in the position. There were suggestions of insufficient experience with 'big clubs' despite his tenure at Inter, and that he might struggle to manage high profile players.^[53] Former Marseille and Juventus manager Didier Deschamps later claimed that he had been offered the job before Hodgson, but turned it down.^[54]

Having signed Milan Jovanović and Joe Cole, Hodgson's first game as manager was a friendly against one of his former clubs, Grasshopper Zürich, on 21 July, which ended as a goalless draw.^[55] On 29 July, his first competitive game in charge was a 2–0 away win against FK Rabotnički in the Europa League.^[56] In the return leg at Anfield, Liverpool again won 2–0, winning the tie 4–0 on aggregate. Hodgson's first league game with Liverpool was against Arsenal, being denied a debut win only after a last minute own goal by Pepe Reina resulted in a draw.^[57] Hodgson made further signings in goalkeeper Brad Jones, defenders Danny Wilson and Paul Konchesky, midfielders Christian Poulsen and Raul Meireles, as well as re-signing full-back Fábio Aurélio, who had been released by the club earlier in the summer. Meanwhile, Benitez signings Albert Riera, Diego Cavalieri and Javier Mascherano were all sold, whilst Alberto Aquilani was loaned out to Juventus, and Emiliano Insúa was loaned out to Galatasaray. On 29 August, Hodgson achieved his first league win, defeating West Bromwich Albion 1–0 at Anfield.^[58]

After that, Liverpool had a series of disappointing results, one of which saw the club eliminated from the League Cup on 23 September by League Two strugglers Northampton Town at Anfield, losing on penalties.^[59] Prior to the home game against newly-promoted Blackpool on 3 October, Hodgson responded to his critics, describing himself as "one of the most respected coaches in Europe" and said it was "insulting" to suggest he couldn't handle Liverpool's big-name players.^[60] Liverpool lost the game 2–1,^[61] leaving them third from bottom after seven games, and Hodgson admitted that his side were potentially facing a relegation battle.^[62][63] It was the club's worst start to a season in 82 years.^[64]

By late October, speculation was rife that Hodgson would be sacked.^[65][66] Hodgson stated that he had no intention of resigning and responded aggressively to suggestions that Frank Rijkaard, who had won the Champions League as manager of Barcelona, would be appointed in his place.^[17][67][68] Three straight Premier League victories, including a 2–0 home win over league leaders Chelsea, reduced speculation as Liverpool returned to the top half of the table. New club owner John W. Henry stated his backing for Hodgson.^[69]

Performances remained erratic and on 29 December 2010, Liverpool were beaten 1–0 at home by bottom of the table Wolverhampton Wanderers, the club's first loss to Wolves in 27 years.^[70] After the defeat, Hodgson criticised Liverpool fans for not supporting him from the beginning of his tenure.^[71] At the turn of the year, Liverpool had their lowest points total since the 1953–54 season.^[72] A 2–1 home win over Bolton Wanderers in their next game appeared to lift the pressure slightly,^[73] only for a 3–1 defeat at Blackburn on 5 January 2011 to cause the club's owners to reconsider his position.^[74] After 31 games in charge, the shortest managerial reign in Liverpool history, Hodgson left the club by mutual consent on the morning of 8 January 2011, with Kenny Dalglish announced as his replacement.^[72][75]

Hodgson was dogged throughout his time at Anfield by suggestions that the job was beyond him, in addition to the continued presence of fan favourite Dalglish – whom a significant proportion of the support preferred over him as manager.^{[76][77][78][79][80]}

West Bromwich Albion[link]

Hodgson was appointed manager of West Bromwich Albion on 11 February 2011 signing a contract until 2012.^[81] Hodgson replaced Roberto Di Matteo after a poor run of form which saw West Brom lose 13 of their previous 18 matches.

Roy Hodgson's first game in charge ended in a 1–1 home draw against West Brom's Black Country rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers. Hodgson helped West Brom to 5 wins and 5 draws from 12 remaining games, including an important 2–1 win at the Hawthorns against the club that had sacked him earlier in the season. They finished 11th in the final table – their highest league finish for three decades.^[82]

Despite having to deal with West Brom's notoriously frugal approach to the transfer market, Hodgson made some solid if not spectacular signings in the summer of 2011, replacing much-maligned goalkeeping duo Boaz Myhill and Scott Carson with former Manchester United ace Ben Foster on loan from Birmingham City and drafting in Márton Fülöp from Ipswich Town on a free transfer. Experience and height was added to the backline in the form of Northern Ireland international Gareth McAuley on a free transfer and recently relegated Preston North End's player of the season Billy Jones also arrived to add cover at fullback. Prior to the start of the season, former Hawthorns hero Zoltán Gera also returned on a free transfer from Fulham and a summer-long chase for Shane Long was finally ended with the Irish international signing for an undisclosed fee reported to be in the region of £4million. Long joined the club in time to make a scoring debut in the season's opener.

Following good performances against Manchester United and Chelsea in their opening two fixtures it was clear Hodgson's preferred 4–4–1–1 formation was going to be implemented leading to some derision from the crowd.^{[citation needed]} Having developed a reputation for fluid football under their predecessors West Brom's players appeared to struggle to adapt to Hodgson's rigid and disciplined style with their home form suffering.^{[citation needed]} By the turn of the year his side had beaten only perennial Premier League strugglers Bolton Wanderers and local rivals Wolves at The Hawthorns, in stark contrast to their scintilating away form which saw only Manchester United and Manchester City pick up more points on the road than West Brom in the first half of the season.

Despite his side being continually beset with injuries to key players and the season long loss of Zoltan Gera to a cruciate ligament injury in only his second start after returning, Hodgson's side always remained well above the relegation zone until the Christmas period when successive 2–1 home defeats to newly promoted duo Swansea City and Norwich City as well as to bottom club Wigan Athletic saw them move within three points of 18th place Bolton Wanderers.

With Hodgson repeatedly stating his ambition for the season was to ensure a third season of Premier League football for West Brom for the first time in almost thirty years, he once again raided Ipswich and Birmingham City for midfielder Keith Andrews and full back Liam Ridgewell respectively in the January transfer window adding balance and fluidity to his struggling side and the impact was instant.^{[citation needed]} In February 2012, he led Albion to successive four-goal wins over local rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux, and Sunderland at The Hawthorns.

On 29 April 2012, it was reported that Hodgson was approached by the FA for the vacant England manager job.^[83] He was appointed as England manager two days later, but continued to manage West Bromwich Albion until the end of the 2011–12 Premier League campaign.^[84]

England[link]

It had been widely reported in the British press that Harry Redknapp was favourite for the position.^[85] However, the FA Chairman, David Bernstein, stated that, despite there being a shortlist of candidates, Roy Hodgson was the only one approached for the position.^[86] On 1 May 2012, the Football Association appointed Hodgson as the manager of England after agreeing a four-year contract.^[87]

Upon reporting Hodgson's appointment on 2 May 2012, the tabloid newspaper The Sun mocked Hodgson's rhotacism with a front cover headline of "Bwing on the Euwos (We'll see you in Ukwaine against Fwance)" and reporting that he was "affectionately known as Woy due to his speech impediment".^[88] The Football Association released a press statement stating that they found The Sun's headline "unacceptable" and Bernstein commented that he found it "in poor taste and disrespectful".^[89] The FA commented that the Press Complaints Commission had received a large number of objections to the headline.^[89] In Hodgson's first game, a friendly on 26 May in Oslo, England beat Norway 1–0, the first win by an England side against Norway for 32 years.^[90]

In the build-up to Euro 2012, Hodgson added Ray Lewington, Gary Neville and goalkeeping coach Dave Watson to his coaching team.^[91]

Personal life[link]

Hodgson is married to Sheila, with whom he has two sons, Christopher and Michael. He is known to be a fan of rock band The Rolling Stones and of the authors Sebastian Faulks, John Updike, Philip Roth and Saul Bellow.^[92] Hodgson, who has a rhotacism speech impediment, is multilingual: in addition to his native English, he speaks fluent Norwegian, Swedish, German and Italian, as well as some Danish, French and Finnish.^[93]

Although Hodgson played for Berea Park F.C. in South Africa's white-only National Football League during the 1970s, he has stated his admiration for Nelson Mandela^[94] and coached a World XI team in a charity football event in Mandela's honour in August 1999.^[95] Upon his appointment as the manager of England's national football team in May 2012 he was asked about his time during the apartheid era and Hodgson stated that he only played in South Africa for footballing reasons, as did his team mates at the club and not because of a political belief.^[96]

Career statistics[link]

Hodgson during his time as Fulham manager

As of match played 26 May 2012

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	Win %
Halmstad		January 1976	November 1980	&10000000000000130000000130	&1000000000000005200000052	&1000000000000004500000045	&1000000000000003300000033	&1000000000000004000000040.00
Bristol City		3 January 1982	30 April 1982	&1000000000000002000000020	&100000000000000030000003	&100000000000000050000005	&1000000000000001200000012	&1000000000000001500000015.00
Oddevold		1982	1982					—
Örebro		January 1983	November 1984	&1000000000000004800000048	&1000000000000002400000024	&1000000000000001500000015	&100000000000000090000009	&1000000000000005000000050.00
Malmö FF		January 1985	November 1989	&10000000000000110000000110	&1000000000000006800000068	&1000000000000002800000028	&1000000000000001400000014	&1000000000000006182000061.82
Neuchâtel Xamax		July 1990	June 1992	&1000000000000007200000072	&1000000000000002900000029	&1000000000000002700000027	&1000000000000001600000016	&1000000000000004028000040.28
Switzerland		26 January 1992	15 November 1995	&1000000000000004100000041	&1000000000000002100000021	&1000000000000001000000010	&1000000000000001000000010	&1000000000000005121999951.22
Internazionale		5 October 1995	25 May 1997	&1000000000000008600000086	&1000000000000003800000038	&1000000000000002500000025	&1000000000000002300000023	&1000000000000004418999944.19
Blackburn Rovers		1 June 1997	21 November 1998	&1000000000000006200000062	&1000000000000002200000022	&1000000000000001800000018	&1000000000000002200000022	&1000000000000003547999935.48
Internazionale		5 May 1999	27 June 1999	&100000000000000030000003	&100000000000000020000002	&100000000000000010000001	&100000000000000000000000	&1000000000000006667000066.67
Grasshoppers		July 1999	June 2000	&1000000000000003600000036	&1000000000000001400000014	&1000000000000001200000012	&1000000000000001000000010	&1000000000000003889000038.89
FC Copenhagen		July 2000	June 2001	&1000000000000003500000035	&1000000000000001800000018	&1000000000000001200000012	&100000000000000050000005	&1000000000000005142999951.43
Udinese		21 June 2001	10 December 2001	&1000000000000001700000017	&100000000000000070000007	&100000000000000050000005	&100000000000000050000005	&1000000000000004117999941.18
United Arab Emirates		9 April 2002	14 January 2004	&1000000000000001700000017	&100000000000000040000004	&100000000000000060000006	&100000000000000070000007	&1000000000000002353000023.53
Viking		11 July 2004	20 December 2005	&1000000000000003800000038	&1000000000000001600000016	&1000000000000001000000010	&1000000000000001200000012	&1000000000000004210999942.11
Finland		16 January 2006	30 November 2007	&1000000000000002200000022	&100000000000000060000006	&1000000000000001100000011	&100000000000000050000005	&1000000000000002726999927.27
Fulham		30 December 2007	1 July 2010	&10000000000000128000000128	&1000000000000005000000050	&1000000000000003200000032	&1000000000000004600000046	&1000000000000003906000039.06
Liverpool		1 July 2010	8 January 2011	&1000000000000003100000031	&1000000000000001300000013	&100000000000000090000009	&100000000000000090000009	&1000000000000004193999941.94
West Bromwich Albion		11 February 2011	13 May 2012	&1000000000000005400000054	&1000000000000002000000020	&1000000000000001300000013	&1000000000000002100000021	&1000000000000003703999937.04
England		14 May 2012	Present	&100000000000000010000001	&100000000000000010000001	&100000000000000000000000	&100000000000000000000000	&10000000000000100000000100.000
Total				&10000000000000951000000951	&10000000000000409000000409	&10000000000000284000000284	&10000000000000258000000258	&1000000000000004300999943.01