Luis de la Fuente (in suit) is the head coach of the La Roja
GhanaWeb Feature by Benjamin Sackey
Spanish national team head coach Luis de la Fuente Castillo has etched his name into the history books, winning laurels with Spain’s youth sides before guiding the senior team to become reigning world champions.
Born on June 21, 1961, the coach played as a left-back, amassing 254 La Liga appearances and six goals over 13 seasons. He featured for Athletic Bilbao and Sevilla, clinching two league titles with Bilbao, including a domestic double with the Copa del Rey in 1984.
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This GhanaWeb feature explores de la Fuente’s coaching career and how he rose to become a world champion.
Club Coaching Career
De la Fuente’s first managerial job was at Portugalete in the regional leagues. In the summer of 2000, he was appointed manager of Segunda División B club Aurrerá de Vitoria but was sacked in March of the following year despite the team sitting seventh in the table.
After a spell back at Sevilla’s academy, de la Fuente returned to Athletic Bilbao. Initially managing the youth and reserve teams, he also served as match delegate for two years before resuming his previous duties. On July 13, 2011, he was named Alavés coach but was dismissed on October 17.
Spanish Youth Teams Career
On May 5, 2013, de la Fuente was appointed head coach of Spain’s under-19 team, leading them to victory at the 2015 UEFA European Championship in Greece. He became manager of the under-21 side in July 2018 after Albert Celades resigned. His first competition was the 2019 European Championship in Italy, where Spain defeated Germany 2–1 in the final in Udine.
De la Fuente also managed Spain’s Olympic team at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Games, winning silver after a 2–1 loss to Brazil in the final.
Spanish National Team Career
On December 8, 2022, de la Fuente was appointed head coach of the senior side after Luis Enrique resigned following Spain’s round-of-16 penalty shootout elimination at the 2022 FIFA World Cup by Morocco.
He was officially presented four days later, with a contract running until UEFA Euro 2024, with the option to extend.
He led Spain to victory in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League, their first ever, defeating Croatia 5–4 on penalties after a 0–0 draw in Rotterdam. Spain topped their Euro 2024 group without conceding a goal, and went on to win the trophy in Berlin with seven straight victories, beating England 2–1 in the final.
In January 2025, de la Fuente extended his contract until the end of Euro 2028. Spain finished first in qualification for the 2026 World Cup, then topped Group H in the finals.
They reached their first World Cup final since 2010, scoring 13 goals and conceding only once, against Belgium’s Charles De Ketelaere in the quarter-finals.
In the final, Spain defeated Argentina 1–0 after extra time to win their second World Cup. De la Fuente became the oldest manager to win the tournament at 65 years and 28 days, surpassing the previous record held by compatriot Vicente del Bosque.
Starting in March 2024, he guided Spain to a world-record 38 consecutive matches unbeaten in regulation time, spanning both the European Championship and World Cup.
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