Sir Gareth Southgate: Former England boss knighted in New Year honours | OneFootball

Former England manager Gareth Southgate has been awarded a knighthood in the annual New Years honours list, paying tribute to his achievements as Three Lions boss.

Southgate ultimately couldn't end England's 58-year wait for a senior men's international trophy during his time at the helm, which began suddenly in 2016, but made considerably more progress than any other manager since the World Cup triumph in 1966.

The former Crystal Palace and Aston Villa defender stepped down following the painful loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final, having also tasted defeat three years earlier in Euro 2020's showpiece.

Southgate's time with the FA spanned more than a decade overall, initially handed control of the Under-21 setup in 2013 after several years out of football since his previous job at Middlesbrough.

He came into the senior position by chance when Sam Allardyce was sacked just one game into his tenure after becoming embroiled in a corruption scandal, initially appointed as interim boss but landing the role full-time within a few months.

In Southgate's first major tournament in 2018, he ended England's 28-year wait for a World Cup semi-final appearance, agonisingly falling at the penultimate hurdle after taking a lead against Croatia. That run included England's first ever penalty shootout win on foreign soil against Colombia in the last 16, as well as a first knockout triumph inside 90 minutes since 2006.

Southgate reached successive Euro finals but lost both / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages

Southgate was credited with changing the culture within the England setup, which had been hamstrung by cliques during the reigns of Sven Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello in particular, changing the relationship between the team, the media and the fans, as well as addressing the mental blocks associated with representing England. That element of his impact was specifically captured in the play, 'Dear England', in which the boss was portrayed by actor Joseph Fiennes.

England couldn't build on the steps made in 2018 and 2021 when the squad travelled to Qatar for the World Cup in 2022, but function over style saw the Three Lions grind their way to a second successive European Championship final this past summer.

From now on to be known as Sir Gareth Southgate, he is the fourth former England manager to be knighted after Sir Walter Winterbottom, Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson.

Southgate has not returned to football since leaving his England role in July. He was heavily linked with Manchester United throughout the summer and into the autumn, prior to Ruben Amorim's November appointment at Old Trafford, believed to be the result of his longstanding relationship with now former sporting director Dan Ashworth.