England women's manager Hope Powell sacked after European Championship failure

England were knocked out in the group stages in this summer's tournament and the FA have relieved Powell of her duties claiming they want 'a fresh outlook'

Hope Powell (Getty Images)

Hope Powell will not continue as England women’s senior team head coach after the Football Association bringing her 15-year reign to an end following the disappointing European Championships campaign.

Powell took on the role in 1998 after ending a successful playing career that saw her make 66 appearances for England women, scoring an impressive 35 goals along the way.

Her highlight as England boss came four years ago when she guided the side to the 2009 European Championships final, but lost out to long-time rival Germany to finish as runners-up.

But things didn’t go so well at the summer’s tournament, where England failed to win a game as they were placed in the same group as France, Spain and Russia.

An opening 3-2 defeat to Spain was followed by a lacklustre 1-1 draw with Russia, meaning they had to win their final group match to stand any chance of qualifying. But they were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by the French, and concerns over Powell’s future in the role immediately arose.

The FA have now admitted that they are looking “for a fresh outlook” as they search for her replacement.

FA General Secretary Alex Horne said in a statement on the FA’s official website: "Hope deserves a lot of credit for her commitment to developing the national teams over such a long period.

"The high point was undoubtedly reaching the UEFA European Championship final four years ago.

"However, after the disappointment of the recent tournament in Sweden, the Club England Board believe the time is right to make a change and for a fresh outlook.

"I'd like to place on record the organisation's thanks to Hope for her efforts and wish her every success in the future.

"Hope will always be welcome back at Wembley Stadium and St.George's Park and she leaves a strong legacy, having helped The FA build the women's game to the strong position it is in today.

"The FA has made significant investment into the women's game over the past 20 years and this has seen major developments such as The FA Women's Super League.

"We have received outstanding support and investment from broadcast and commercial partners, and participation levels make women's football the third most played sport in England.

"It is important we continue this development at major tournaments so we can compete, with Germany, France, Spain and the Nordic countries in Europe in addition to the likes of Japan, Brazil, USA and Canada at the 2015 FIFA World Cup.

"We will now look to recruit a new Head Coach and a Technical lead for women's football who will report to Dan Ashworth. We will be speaking to people from across the game both domestically and internationally before making any appointments."