Marcelo Bielsa, 70, head coach of the Uruguay national football team [Getty Images]
Marcelo Bielsa, 70, head coach of the Uruguay national football team [Getty Images]

Marcelo Bielsa, 70, the Argentine coach who led Uruguay's national football team at the 2026 North America World Cup, has stepped down, saying it was "painful" that things ended so badly.

Bielsa held a press conference at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo on Tuesday, bowing his head in apology to fans.

"Responsibility for this result is clearly mine," he said. "Our final standing requires no excuses."

"I feel deep frustration at the thought of having disappointed the fans," he added. "I never imagined we would produce a performance like this. No one can accept or come to terms with a collapse like this."

Bielsa said he lacked the ability to manage the players effectively. "Everyone gave their best, but it was not enough," he said. "I believe that even if I had made different choices, we would not have changed the outcome."

He also hinted at friction with the squad during the tournament, saying players had asked him to cut down on meetings but that he had insisted on holding them at a certain frequency because of his own way of explaining things. "In the end, the players asked again to reduce them and I agreed," he said.

"The meetings I held covered analysis of the opposing team, explanations of the training program and reviews of previous matches," he said. "I believed these meetings were important."

Uruguay, a historic powerhouse of South American football with two World Cup titles (1930 and 1950) and three fourth-place finishes (1954, 1970 and 2010), managed only two draws and a loss — two points — to finish third in Group H at the North America tournament.

They were the worst-placed third-ranked team across all groups, missing out on the round of 32. Uruguay finished 37th among the 48 competing nations — the worst World Cup result in the country's history.

Bielsa previously led Argentina to gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics men's football tournament and guided the side to the runner-up finish at the 2004 Copa America.

He also steered Leeds United to the English Championship title in the 2019-20 season, earning the club promotion to the Premier League.

But once the tournament began, Uruguay sank into a run of poor results.

They drew 1-1 with Saudi Arabia, a team they were expected to beat, and could only manage a 2-2 draw against Cape Verde, making their World Cup debut. They then fell 0-1 to Spain, one of the title favorites.

Adding to the embarrassment, the Uruguayan Football Association canceled the charter flight it had booked to take the squad from their base in Mexico back to Montevideo, according to foreign media including the Spanish outlet Marca on June 28. Marca described the move as "a reflection of the shock of being eliminated earlier than expected."

Coaches resign after poor showings

Uruguay was not alone. The World Cup has seen a string of coaching departures following disappointing results.

Ronald Koeman stepped down as Netherlands coach after his side was eliminated by Morocco in the round of 32. The Netherlands had never been knocked out before the round of 16 in any of their previous 11 World Cup appearances, but this time they were sent home in their very first knockout match at a tournament expanded to 47 nations.

In an Instagram post, Koeman said it was heartbreaking for his time as Netherlands coach to end this way. "We all dreamed of making history at the World Cup, but it was not to be," he wrote. "I believe I must take responsibility as coach."

Meanwhile, the contract of Czech Republic coach Miroslav Koubek, 74, also came to an end after his side suffered a comeback defeat against South Korea.

The Czech Republic lost 1-2 to South Korea in their opening group match, drew 1-1 with South Africa, then fell 0-3 to co-host Mexico, finishing bottom of Group A with one point from three games.

In a statement on the Czech Football Association's website, Koubek said a media campaign based on "half-truths and distortions" about him was among the reasons for his decision. "In this kind of atmosphere, I no longer see any point in continuing to work for the Czech national team," he said.


yul@heraldcorp.com