All 24 EFL Championship clubs' managers ranked from worst to best | OneFootball

FLW has ranked each Championship manager from worst to best.

The 2025/26 Championship is here, and with it, 24 managers will compete against one another in a bid to fire their teams to promotion.

With the Championship having kicked off this weekend, fans and pundits alike are debating who is among the favourites for promotion and relegation come the end of the season.

Every manager, barring a couple, has had the chance to get a full pre-season under their belt and build their squads in their image for the upcoming campaign. Others, such as Henrik Pedersen at Sheffield Wednesday, have had to take over the reins at their current club under slightly different circumstances.

The Championship is full of twists and turns and chops and changes, so it is almost certain that not every current manager will still be in their positions come the end of the campaign.

Taking into account each manager's history, previous achievements and current situation, here at Football League World, we have attempted to rank each current Championship manager from 24th to 1st...

24 Ryan Mason

By virtue of having managed just one match in a full-time role, West Brom manager Mason has the unfortunate position of last place in this list.

It is worth noting that he has won his one and only game in charge of the Baggies, meaning his 100% win rate actually makes him not only the most successful manager on this list in that metric, but one of the greatest of all time.

However, Mason's small sample size in comparison to the rest of the Championship means it is difficult to judge him and put him above other, more experienced heads.

Since retiring from football in 2018, Mason has acted as caretaker manager to both Antonio Conte and Ange Postecoglou at Spurs, standing in for 13 games in North London, which again, is hard to judge him on.

Now in charge of the Baggies since taking over from Tony Mowbray this summer, Mason will be looking for a strong first campaign in the Midlands.

Danish manager Pedersen has the unfortunate task of trying to turn Sheffield Wednesday's fortunes on its head, taking over from the popular Danny Rohl in recent weeks following his departure due to off-field issues.

Pedersen had been Rohl's assistant for two years at Hillsbrough for two years before taking the top job, and was previously a manager in Germany, Norway and Denmark before his move to England.

He began his role as manager with a late 2-1 loss away at newly-relegated Leicester City, and faces a seemingly impossible task to keep the Owls up amid off-field issues.

22 Alan Sheehan

Similarly to Mason, Swansea boss Sheehan has a very small sample size to judge off, which has played a part in this ranking.

Though that being said, since Sheehan took over duties at the Liberty Stadium last season from his predecessor, Luke Williams, initially on a caretaker basis, he transformed the Swans' fortunes.

The former Leeds and Luton defender was given the Swansea job permanently in late April 2025 and notably went on a five-game winning streak just before being given the job permanently.

The Irishman was given the reins in South Wales at the start of this season as he looks to replicate his end-of-season form into this campaign.

21 Paulo Pezzolano

A tricky one to judge, as it usually is with Watford managers, Uruguayan boss Pezzolano was brought in to Vicarage Road this summer, replacing Tom Cleverley.

The 42-year-old has previously managed in his native Uruguay, as well as in Mexico, Brazil and most recently Spain with Real Vallodolid, where, despite overseeing relegation in 2023, he remained in charge and guided the side to an immediate promotion back to La Liga.

Following a 5-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid, Pezzolano was sacked in November 2024, with Watford being his first managerial job since and a relative unknown in this country.

20 Sergej Jakirovic

Hull have not been afraid to change managers since their new Turkish ownership.

Liam Rosenior guided the Tigers to seventh in 2023/24, then was sacked. His successor, German manager Tim Walter, was then sacked after 18 games, with then Ruben Selles, more on him later, was tasked with keeping Hull up, which he did, but was then sacked at the end of last season.

Now, Bosnian manager Jakirovic is in charge at Humberside. The former defender won the Bosnian league in 2022 with Zrinjski Mostar and then a Croatian domestic double with Dinamo Zagreb in 2024.

Between his time in Croatia and now, he managed Turkish side Kayserispor, who, despite keeping up, was sacked at the end of the season, meaning he was free to join Hull.

19 Gary Rowett

Rowett has been a long-standing name in the Championship for years now, with spells at Birmingham, Derby, Stoke, Millwall, before a brief return to Birmingham and now Oxford, where he is currently.

The Englishman took over from Des Buckingham early last season and guided the club to safety despite many tipping them to be one of the favourites for relegation.

Rowett's time at Stoke is a particular stain on his career, as is the case with a couple of other managers on this list, having spent over £50 million with the Potters following their relegation but losing his job after just 29 games in charge.

Now with Oxford, Rowett is hoping to build on what was a positive first season in charge.

18 Gerhard Struber

Struber is no stranger to Championship football, having had a brief stint with Barnsley in the 2019/20 season, keeping the club up with impressive victories over Nottingham Forest and Brentford late in the season.

Now in charge at Bristol City, the Austrian had been in charge of New York Red Bulls, RB Salzburg and FC. Koln before heading to Ashton Gate, having impressed abroad.

His opening day 4-1 victory at Sheffield United with give the Robins a huge shot of confidence this campaign as they try to shake off playoff heartbreak and losing former manager, Liam Manning.

17 John Mousinho

English manager Mousinho is a rarity in Championship terms, with Portsmouth being his first, and to date, only managerial job of his career so far.

The former Oxford and Burton Albion defender took over from Danny Cowley at Fratton Park in January 2023, and in his first full season at the helm, guided Pompey to the League One title.

Despite looking like one of the favourites to go down in the Championship last season, Mousinho comfortably kept Portsmouth up, with their home form pivotal in their efforts.

He began the season with a win over his former playing side, Oxford, winning 1-0 as he looks to guide his side away from a relegation battle once again.

16 Nathan Jones

A polarising figure due to his eccentric nature, Welsh manager Nathan Jones is never too far away from the spotlight.

Jones took his first managerial job with Luton Town in January 2016 whilst they were still in League Two, guiding the club away from relegation in his first six months in charge, then to the playoffs in his first full season in charge, and then finally to promotion in the 2017/18 season.

His rapid progression saw him land the Stoke job, where it didn't exactly go to plan for the Welshman, being sacked after 10 months in charge and just seven wins.

A return to Luton followed, then a surprise move to Southampton in the Premier League, where he lasted just 14 games in charge before landing at Charlton, where he is today, guiding the Addicks to promotion from League One via the play-offs last season.

15 Liam Manning

Manning joined Norwich, his boyhood club, at the start of the season after impressive spells in Belgium with Lommel SK, then in League One with MK Dons and Oxford, before making his way to the Championship with Bristol City.

The Englishman guided the Robins to the play-offs last season for the first time in 17 years, though ultimately lost out to Sheffield United over two legs.

Still just 39 years old and now in charge of his boyhood club, Manning's journey into management has been an upward trajectory since day one, and he will be as motivated as ever this season as the Canaries aim for the play-off places.