Scottish FA Nears Appointment of New Head Coach After Clarke Exit

The Scottish FA is moving into the final stages of appointing a new head coach, with the search for Steve Clarke’s successor nearing its conclusion.

Clarke walked away in the summer after Scotland’s group-stage exit at the World Cup, a brutal full stop to a seven-year reign that had once promised a different storyline. He had only signed a new four-year deal in May, but the early elimination cut deep and the decision to resign followed soon after.

Now the clock is ticking again.

Scotland are back in competitive action next month, with a demanding four-game Nations League block starting away to Slovenia on 26 September. The new head coach is expected to be in place in time to shape that campaign, or at the very least step into a squad and structure that cannot afford to drift.

The process has been driven by chief executive Ian Maxwell and Craig Mulholland, who became the SFA’s chief football officer in May. Together, they have cast the net wide.

They have held talks with a broad range of candidates from across the UK and overseas, speaking to coaches with different profiles, backgrounds and philosophies. Interviews have already taken place, and the governing body is now understood to be closing in on a final decision.

One key detail remains under wraps: whether the next head coach will be a Scot or a foreign appointment. Inside Hampden, that debate has rumbled on for years. This time, the SFA is keeping its cards tight to its chest.

What is clearer is that there should be some continuity in the backroom team. Steven Naismith, Clarke’s assistant, said last month that he expects to remain part of the national set-up under the incoming boss. His presence would offer a link between eras, a familiar voice for a squad still processing the end of Clarke’s tenure.

The World Cup exit may have drawn a line under one chapter, but the next one arrives fast. Slovenia await in September. The Nations League table will not wait for Scotland to finish soul‑searching.