Spain may have made a coaching change just months after winning the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, but they have not missed a beat.
Jorge Vilda, who led the Spanish women to the World Cup title after eight years in charge, was sacked as head coach in early September of 2023 as part of the federation’s overhaul in the wake of the Luis Rubiales scandal. In Vilda’s place, the Spanish football federation (RFEF) appointed assistant Montse Tome as his successor.
Tome’s hire was a historic one, making her the first female head coach in Spanish women’s football history. Questions remained at the time of her hire over how the federation would proceed into the coming four-year cycle, but many of those have now been answered.
With Tome set to lead Spain into the nation’s first Women’s Euro final, The Sporting News brings you a full overview of the nation’s football boss.
🚨 𝗢𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 | La RFEF nombra a @montse_tome nueva seleccionadora nacional femenina.
La asturiana será la primera mujer en ostentar el cargo y se estrenará en septiembre en la #NationsLeague ante Suecia y Suiza.
ℹ️ https://t.co/fAlqVyWwvD #JugarLucharYGanar pic.twitter.com/vG4BtbGjAP
— RFEF (@rfef) September 5, 2023
Who is Spain women’s coach Montse Tome?
In early September 2023, the RFEF appointed Montse Tome to replace Jorge Vilda as women’s national team coach.
Tome’s appointment made her the first female head coach of the Spain women’s national team ever. She is the fourth head coach in Spain women’s national team history, following up Teodoro Nieto (1981-1988), Ignacio Quereda (1988-2015), and Vilda (2015-2023).
The 41-year-old Tome, whose full first name is Montserrat but often shortened to “Montse,” enjoyed an 11-year playing career which featured most prominently a two-year stint at Barcelona from 2010-2012 and four caps for the Spain national team.
After retiring in 2013, Tome moved to coaching, where she joined the Spain national team setup in 2018 as an assistant. She had been an assistant with Spain for her entire coaching career until her recent head coaching appointment.
MORE: Who is Luis Rubiales?
Montse Tome record, trophies won as Spain women’s head coach
Spain have been one of the best women’s international teams in the world since Tome’s hire, not missing a beat from their Women’s World Cup title under Jorge Vilda.
Since Tome’s hire, at which point Spain were ranked No. 2 in the world by FIFA, they have not fallen below third in the world at any point. They were ranked No. 1 for three straight releases, in December 2023, March 2024, and June 2024. After falling to No. 3 for August 2024, they returned to No. 2 on December 2024, where they have been since, behind only the United States.
Tome led Spain to their first-ever title in the relatively new UEFA Women’s Nations League, and she now has them in the final of Euro 2025, the nation’s first appearance in a Euro final.
Montse Tome record as Spain head coach
Montse Tome trophies won as Spain head coach:
- UEFA Women’s Nations League (2024)
Why was Jorge Vilda fired as Spain women’s national team coach?
While the RFEF acquiesced to a reported desire from the players to appoint a female head coach, the elevation of Tome from assistant to head coach reportedly did not leave the players fully satisfied, and there has been plenty of controversy around the latest selection for this UEFA Nations League match.
The ongoing situation between the La Roja squad and Tome/the Spanish Football Federation appears strained, given the strong feeling of unease surrounding the handling of the Luis Rubiales situation.
All 11 of Vilda’s backroom colleagues had already resigned in protest over the ongoing crisis surrounding Rubiales. That came after a group of 81 players boycotted the national team after the then Spanish FA boss kissed forward Jenni Jennifer Hermoso following last month’s final.
Vilda came under fire for applauding Rubiales’ extraordinary comments during a press conference in which the RFEF president repeatedly refused to resign and hit out at “fake feminists”.
Some players have refused to be called up until the situation ends, while others begrudgingly accepted their inclusion in the latest squad.
Fifteen members of the World Cup-winning squad last month have been included in Tome’s first squad selection.
