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Switzerland rewards coach Murat Yakin with contract extension for 2026 World Cup

Fri, Jul 12, 2024
Soccer News (AP)

BERN, Switzerland (AP) - Switzerland coach Murat Yakin has agreed on a contract extension to take the team into qualifying for the 2026 World Cup after an impressive run to the European Championship quarterfinals.

The Swiss soccer federation said Friday it will hold a news conference Monday to detail the extensions for Yakin and assistant coach Giorgio Contini.

Yakin, who has been in the Swiss job for three years, had a difficult period during qualifying for Euro 2024 amid tensions with the squad. He was reportedly approached to take a club job in Saudi Arabia.

Switzerland was a high achiever at Euro 2024, going unbeaten until being eliminated in a penalty shootout by England last Saturday.

Yakin's team outclassed defending champion Italy 2-0 in the round of 16 and was held to 1-1 draws by Germany and England only by late equalizing goals. Switzerland trailed for just 13 minutes during its five games, in a 1-1 draw with Scotland.

Switzerland has lost just one in 19 games under Yakin since being routed 6-1 by Portugal in the 2022 World Cup round of 16.

Switzerland should be a top-seeded team in one of the 12 European qualifying groups for the next World Cup which will be played in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The draw is scheduled in December.

The 12 group winners advance direct next year and four more teams qualify through European playoff brackets in March 2026.

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AP Euro 2024: https://apnews.com/hub/euro-2024

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