Only weeks before the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, Saudi Arabia has made a change on the touchline.
Fabrizio Romano reports Hervé Renard is out as manager with Al-Khaleej head coach Georgios Donis coming in to replace him.
🚨🇸🇦 Al-Khaleej coach Georgios Donis will lead Saudi Arabia at the World Cup 2026.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 17, 2026
Official announcement coming once the contract is signed, agreement done with the Saudi Federation. pic.twitter.com/Sk6fzMCG9X
Saudi Arabia will participate in Group H alongside Spain, Cabo Verde and Uruguay.
Renard, 57, was in his second stint as Green Falcons manager. He had returned to the post in the fall of 2024 after having previously served as manager from 2019 to the end of the 2022 World Cup. It was in Qatar that Saudi Arabia pulled off one of the shock results of the tournament, defeating eventual champions Argentina 2-1 in the group stage. Losing their other two matches, the Green Falcons failed to make it on to the knockout round.
Renard went on to lead France’s women’s side at both the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He previously won the African Cup of Nations with both Zambia and Cote d’Ivoire.
Donis, 56, has extensive managerial experience at the club level within Saudi Arabia, as well as his native Greece. The job will be his first in international football.
As a player, Donis played in the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers and was capped 24 times by Greece.
Saudi Arabia opens up its World Cup on June 15 against Uruguay in Miami.
