What’s a wholesome retirement? As far as sporting icons are concerned, it would be retire winning a title, to put it simply. Emma Hayes could have retired any year for the last five years and still be in the pantheon of all-time great soccer managers, despite having a long career ahead. In a recent interview, coach Hayes had teased retirement, stressing that the Olympic triumph would have given her the grandest of farewells.

Winning two titles with two different teams within two months is not something every manager could pull off. Especially when one’s a club and the other is a national team. But that’s Emma Hayes for you. She led Chelsea to their fifth straight WSL win and two months later she seized the Olympic gold with Team USA. “I felt at the full-time whistle, what an extraordinary year I’ve just had winning a WSL title with Chelsea and now a gold medal with the USA – I could retire happy,” Emma Hayes said in her recent interview with ITV News.

Anyhow, she made herself clear later by saying she was in no rush to hang her shoes. Besides, the London-born boss’ contract with the USWNT runs through 2027. Moreover, Hayes at 47 has a long road ahead in her managerial stint. Well, that has always been the case, considering Hayes embarked on her coaching journey in her late 20s. And, it’s not like the US coach has ever given up on coaching. Though not a formal retirement, the English boss has time and again taken breaks from coaching. Besides, she also came quite close to quitting after turbulent years in Chelsea.

Times when Emma Hayes stopped being a soccer manager

After coaching Iona Gaels’ NCAA soccer team, Emma Hayes gave up being a head coach for three years. She worked as an assistant manager at Arsenal from 2006 to 2008. However, she restarted the head coach’s journey with the NWSL’s Chicago Red Stars in 2008 till 2010. Thereafter, it looked like the world would miss Emma Hayes’ management services from then on. She left Chicago for London to join her father in the family business. She was at the helm of their currency exchange firm Covent Garden in the UK.

Two years later, Hayes would embark on her illustrious Chelsea stint which would last 12 years. But her final years were tumultuous. She battled personal tragedies such as the loss of an infant son, and the loss of her father, whilst winning titles in Chelsea. Even in her farewell season, Hayes came under scrutiny for her comments against fellow WSL coaches. Such instances have forced the 47-year-old to decide she has had enough in Chelsea.

Thankfully, she did not take a long break before the US job. So, let’s hope the US continues to be a dream haven for coach Hayes so that she doesn’t even subtly mull over retiring anytime soon.