The Most Famous
COACHES from Uruguay
Top 6
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Uruguayan Coaches of all time. This list of famous Uruguayan Coaches is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Óscar Tabárez (b. 1947)
With an HPI of 62.08, Óscar Tabárez is the most famous Uruguayan Coach. His biography has been translated into 41 different languages on wikipedia.
Óscar Washington Tabárez Silva (Latin American Spanish: [ˈoskaɾ taˈβaɾes]; born 3 March 1947), known as El Maestro (The Teacher), is a Uruguayan former professional football manager and former player. After an unassuming career as a player and after working as a primary school teacher, Tabárez embarked on an extensive coaching career which has lasted more than 30 years and included coaching teams in Colombia, Argentina, Italy and Spain. He managed the Uruguay national football team from 1988 to 1990, returning to the job for a second time in 2006. He led the team to fourth place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and to victory in the 2011 Copa América. With Tabárez, Uruguay qualified for four World Cups, reaching the round of 16 twice, the quarterfinals once, and the semi-finals once. In October 2017 Tabárez qualified Uruguay for a fourth time; reaching the 5th position at the 2018 World Cup tournament. On 25 March 2016, two and a half weeks after completing ten years as the manager of Uruguay, Tabárez surpassed Francisco Maturana for the head coach with most World Cup qualifying games in South America with 47, with the singularity that he has only managed Uruguay. Tabárez also is the fourth-ranked manager with most games at the Copa América with 30, participating in seven tournaments (1989, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2021). In 2012, for his contributions to association football, Tabaréz became the recipient of the FIFA Order of Merit, the highest honour awarded by FIFA.
2. Juan López Fontana (1908 - 1983)
With an HPI of 54.24, Juan López Fontana is the 2nd most famous Uruguayan Coach. Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.
Juan López Fontana (15 March 1908 – 4 October 1983) was a Uruguayan professional football manager who won the 1950 FIFA World Cup as the head coach of the Uruguay national team.
3. Omar Borrás (1929 - 2022)
With an HPI of 49.53, Omar Borrás is the 3rd most famous Uruguayan Coach. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Omar Bienvenido Borrás Branda (15 June 1929 – 19 October 2022) was a Uruguayan football manager.
4. Ondino Viera (1901 - 1997)
With an HPI of 48.62, Ondino Viera is the 4th most famous Uruguayan Coach. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Ondino Leonel Viera Palasérez (10 September 1901 – 27 June 1997), in Brazil also known as Ondino Vieira, was a Uruguayan football manager. He was the first coach to use a 4-2-4 in Brazil. In his long-lasting career he won between the 1930s and 1960s important titles with clubs in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay. With the national team of Paraguay he reached second spot at the Copa América of 1963 and at the World Cup of 1966 in England he led Uruguay into the quarterfinals. He was the manager of the Uruguay national team during the 1966 FIFA World Cup. His son, Milton, was also in the World Cup squad. In 1967 the United Soccer Association imported entire squads from Europe and South America to play in North America. With Viera as manager, Cerro played as the New York Skyliners. He also coached Nacional, Fluminense, where he achieved great success and coached the second-most games in club's history, Vasco da Gama and Peñarol. He was famously quoted as saying "Other countries have their history. Uruguay has its football".
5. Sergio Markarián (b. 1944)
With an HPI of 48.35, Sergio Markarián is the 5th most famous Uruguayan Coach. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Sergio Apraham Markarián Abrahamián (born 1 November 1944) is a Uruguayan-Argentine former football coach of Armenian descent. In 2015, he was the head coach of the Greece national team.
6. Gus Poyet (b. 1967)
With an HPI of 48.23, Gus Poyet is the 6th most famous Uruguayan Coach. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.
Gustavo Augusto Poyet Domínguez (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈɡus poˈʝet]; born 15 November 1967) is a Uruguayan professional football manager and former footballer who most recently managed Greece. Poyet played as a midfielder and began his career with short spells at Grenoble and River Plate. He then spent seven years at Real Zaragoza, with whom he won the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In 1997, Poyet moved to Chelsea on a free transfer and helped the club win the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In 2001, he moved to Tottenham Hotspur, where he saw out the remainder of his career. He was also part of the Uruguay side which won the 1995 Copa América. After his playing career ended, Poyet moved into coaching. He served as assistant manager to Dennis Wise at Swindon Town and Leeds United, and Juande Ramos at Tottenham Hotspur. In November 2009, Poyet was appointed manager of Brighton & Hove Albion and in his first full season led the club to promotion as League One Champions, for which he was named League One Manager of the Year by the LMA. In October 2013 he was hired by Premier League team Sunderland and guided them to the League Cup final in his first season, but was sacked in March 2015 after a poor run of results. He later had spells at Superleague Greece side AEK Athens, La Liga club Real Betis, Chinese Super League team Shanghai Shenhua, Bordeaux of Ligue 1 and Universidad Católica in Chile. His most recent appointment was coach of Greece from 2022 until 2024.
People
Pantheon has 6 people classified as Uruguayan coaches born between 1901 and 1967. Of these 6, 3 (50.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Uruguayan coaches include Óscar Tabárez, Sergio Markarián, and Gus Poyet. The most famous deceased Uruguayan coaches include Juan López Fontana, Omar Borrás, and Ondino Viera. As of April 2024, 2 new Uruguayan coaches have been added to Pantheon including Omar Borrás, and Ondino Viera.
Living Uruguayan Coaches
Go to all Rankings
Óscar Tabárez
1947 - Present
HPI: 62.08
Sergio Markarián
1944 - Present
HPI: 48.35
Gus Poyet
1967 - Present
HPI: 48.23
Deceased Uruguayan Coaches
Go to all RankingsJuan López Fontana
1908 - 1983
HPI: 54.24
Omar Borrás
1929 - 2022
HPI: 49.53
Ondino Viera
1901 - 1997
HPI: 48.62
