WHO IS Heimir Hallgrimsson?
That was the question on the lips of many Irish fans today after the FAI’s surprise announcement that their 230-day search for Stephen Kenny’s successor came to its conclusion.
The 57-year-old Iceland-born coach becomes just the third non-Irishman to manage the men’s senior national team, following in the footsteps of Jack Charlton and Giovanni Trapattoni.
The former defender enjoyed a modest playing career and spent over 20 years in Iceland, representing sides including ÍBV, Höttur and KFS.
Hallgrimsson began coaching in 1993, more than 10 years before retiring as a player when he took charge of Höttur women’s outfit.
He would go on to manage both the ÍBV women’s and men’s teams helping both sides progress between 1999 and 2011, when he agreed to become Iceland’s assistant manager.
His move into the position coincided with a memorable period for the Icelandic national team, as they reached improbable heights for a country whose population is approximately 330,000.
He was initially number two to Lars Lagerbäck, but the pair signed a new contract as joint coaches in 2013.
Iceland played with a 4-4-2 formation early on but later switched to 4-2-3-1 and incorporated a high-pressing style.
Moreover, within six years, the team went from 133rd in the Fifa world rankings to 22nd.
They narrowly missed out on qualification for the 2014 World Cup, coming second in their group behind Switzerland but ahead of Slovenia, Norway, Albania and Cyprus.
In an ensuing playoff against Croatia, they drew the first leg 0-0 before suffering a 2-0 defeat in the away game.
Over the next two years, Hallgrimsson, working alongside Lagerbäck, consolidated his reputation as a top coach.
Iceland qualified for Euro 2016, finishing second in their group, behind the Czech Republic, but ahead of Turkey, Netherlands, Kazakhstan and Latvia. They won both games against the Dutch and beat every team at least once.
The tournament proper was another major success story. They finished second in their group, behind Hungary on goal difference but ahead of eventual winners Portugal and Austria.
A frustrated Cristiano Ronaldo accused them of showing a “small mentality” at what he perceived as ultra-defensive tactics following a 1-1 draw.
The round-of-16 saw the most famous result in the country’s history, beating England 2-1 despite going behind to a fourth-minute Wayne Rooney goal, creating some unforgettable images and moments of unexpected ecstasy along the way.
They were then well beaten 5-2 by tournament hosts and eventual finalists France in the quarter-finals. However, it was a creditable performance overall, especially considering they had never qualified for a major tournament before then.
Their fans popularised the thunderclap and over 100,000 people greeted them at the airport following the tournament as a tribute to the immense joy they had inspired.
After the Euros, Lagerbäck stepped down from the role to take charge of Norway, leaving Hallgrimsson in sole charge of Iceland.
He oversaw the country’s qualification to the World Cup for the first time.
Iceland finished top of the qualifying group, two points ahead of the eventual finalists at the tournament, Croatia, as well as eclipsing Ukraine, Turkey, Finland and Kosovo, with the team winning seven, drawing two and losing just once on their way to Russia.
Given how well the path to the World Cup went, the tournament itself was a disappointment.
Iceland had a decent start, drawing 1-1 with Argentina, but a 2-0 loss to Nigeria followed by a last-gasp 2-1 defeat against Croatia meant they were going home early.
This setback prompted Hallgrimsson’s resignation. Astonishingly, he had become a dentist after finishing playing and continued to work part-time during this period, explaining that dealing with clients provided much-needed relaxation away from the high-pressure environment of international football.
He finished with an overall record of 25 wins, 13 draws and 19 losses in just under five years in charge. Of course, he was not solely responsible for the success, with the necessary infrastructure and resources devoted to football behind the scenes integral to the country’s unlikely sporting revolution. But his strong leadership and astute tactics helped pave the way for this halcyon period for Icelandic football.
Hallgrimsson was well-liked behind the scenes and had a common touch coupled with good people skills that helped ingratiate him in the job.
Per the New York Times about Iceland’s initial difficulties in attaining footballing progress: “One of the problems, Hallgrimsson believed, was the near-dearth of fan support. Though supporters came to the games, there was virtually no fan culture, none of the sort of emotional investment that can make soccer a symbiotic enterprise between spectators and players.
“So he did something that would be unheard-of pretty much anyplace else: He invited fans to meet him at a pub before the next match, against the Faroe Islands. Only about a dozen hard-core supporters came. Hallgrimsson unveiled the starting lineup before releasing it to the news media, walked the fans through an exegesis of the opponents’ strengths and weaknesses, and showed them the same motivational video he had shown the players.
“Hallgrimsson has kept up the tradition, even after becoming head coach two years ago. Now hundreds of people come to the meetings, part of a burgeoning group of fans that are among the most voluble, passionate (and peaceful, because they are Icelandic) in Europe.”
A few months after leaving Iceland, Hallgrimsson was announced as coach of Qatari league side Al-Arabi.
He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract, which was not renewed after it expired in the summer of 2021.
Their players in this period included ex-Swansea striker Wilfried Bony, Iceland legends Aron Gunnarsson and Birkir Bjarnason, and ex-Barcelona and Stoke City defender Marc Muniesa.
The team had suffered a 10-1 loss to Al Sadd, four months before Hallgrimsson took over, so the team were in a less-than-healthy state, though the incoming boss ultimately guided them to a sixth-place finish out of 12 teams.
The following season saw another mid-table finish as the team came seventh. And they ended up in the same position during Hallgrimsson’s last campaign in charge.
He was replaced by Qatari coach Younes Ali, who has guided the team to fourth, second and fifth-place finishes in the three seasons since, with more high-profile players coming on board including Rafinha, Marco Verratti and Abdou Diallo.
Hallgrimsson spent over a year without a job before being announced as the new Jamaica boss in September 2022. It was not the unequivocal success of Iceland unfortunately. During 27 games in charge, he won 11, drew six and lost 10.
The team made a decent start to World Cup qualifying under his watch, beating Dominican Republic and Dominica. Nevertheless, three group-stage losses in this summer’s Copa America at the hands of Mexico, Ecuador and Venezuela prompted his departure.
Some of his most notable victories during that stint came against Canada and Trinidad and Tobago. They also held Mexico and the USA to draws in the Nations League and Gold Cup respectively.
“I never thought about any of this,” he told The Guardian before the World Cup in 2018. “Coaching my hometown team I was really proud and thought: ‘This is the biggest thing for me.’ I’ve never been here and hoping that, in one or two years, I’d be there. If good things happen and it leads you to something else, maybe something bigger, that’s something the universe takes care of.”
A New York Times profile that same year gave a good insight into his character with a memorable opening passage.
“As the coach of the most successful national soccer team in Icelandic history, Heimir Hallgrimsson has had to make some sacrifices. This year, for instance, he was abroad with the team and could not dress up as his favourite mythological character, Gryla the child-snatching troll, at the Christmas party in Heimaey, his hometown.
“Because Gryla’s costume obscures the wearer’s identity, few people realized that Hallgrimsson was for many years the man in the troll suit.”
Iceland have hardly flourished since his departure, failing to qualify for three major tournaments.
Ireland, meanwhile, will hope Hallgrimsson can have a similar impact, following in the footsteps of fellow outside-the-box choices Charlton and Trapattoni by inspiring the team to punch above its weight and secure much-coveted qualification for a major tournament.
