When Emma Hayes left Chelsea to join the USWNT in the summer of 2024, her departure threatened to shake up the dominant WSL club.
However, the Blues managed to replace their best manager to date with one of the most highly rated coaches in the women’s game – Sonia Bompastor.
The 44-year-old former France international has made a great start to life in west London, starting his career with the team The 2024-25 season is firing on all cylinders. But who is Bompastor and why did the Blues choose her? replace Hayes?
Sonia Bompastor’s journey to Chelsea
Before she became one of the best young managers in Europe, Bompastor was a world-class player in her own right.
The midfielder, who was equally at home in defense, remains one of the best players in French history.
Winning 156 caps for the national team over 13 years, Bompastor played for La Roche-sur-Yon, Montpellier, Washington Freedom and Paris St-Germain.
But it was at Lyon that she really left her mark: in two different spells, Bompastor won a remarkable 11 major trophies – including back-to-back Champions League titles in 2011 and 2012.
When Bompastor decided to stop playing in 2013, she initially stayed with the French champions as director of the women’s academy, a position she held for eight years.
In 2021, Lyon named her first team manager and her stock rose dramatically. In his first year in charge, the team achieved an undefeated season, winning the league and beating Barcelona 3-1 in the Champions League final to win a record eighth European Cup.
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Bompastor secured two more French league titles and a domestic cup over the next two seasons before deciding it was time for a new challenge.
Her last match as coach before moving to Chelsea had the potential to deliver a fairytale result – the 2024 Champions League final in Bilbao. Unfortunately for the French coach, this was not to be the case as her team lost 2-0 to the great Barcelona.
Until then, moving to Stamford Bridge has almost been confirmed. Bompastor’s task of equaling or even exceeding Emma Hayes’ achievements may seem daunting
However, the French coach has the experience, tactical smarts and player management skills to maintain his form WSL title with Chelsea this season and take it a step further?
