Julen Lopetegui

Julen Lopetegui is the head coach of Qatar at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, leading Al-Annabi back to the World Cup for the second consecutive tournament — but this time as continental qualifiers, not hosts. Born in Asteasu, in the Basque Country, on 28 August 1966, he was appointed by the QFA in September 2025 with a remit to give Qatar's project a sharper European tactical edge.

A backup goalkeeper for Real Madrid and Barcelona during his playing career — capped just once by Spain but on the bench for the 1994 World Cup — Lopetegui's true vocation emerged in coaching. He built Spain's golden youth pipeline as U-19, U-20 and U-21 coach (2010–2014), winning back-to-back European titles in 2012 and 2013. After two strong seasons at Porto, he took the senior Spain job in 2016 and built a 20-game unbeaten run — only to be sacked two days before the 2018 World Cup after announcing a move to Real Madrid, where he then lasted just 14 games.

His reputation was rebuilt at Sevilla (2019–2022), where he won the 2020 Europa League with a famous comeback against Inter in Cologne. Stints at Wolverhampton and West Ham (2024–25) followed before Qatar came calling.

Qatar are in Group B with Canada, Switzerland and Bosnia, opening at BC Place on 12 June. Lopetegui's brief: turn the Asian Cup-winning generation — Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Hassan Al-Haydos — into a side that can avoid the pointless group-stage exit of 2022 and finally win a competitive World Cup match.