Sports coaches play a pivotal role in shaping the destiny of their teams. Throughout history, only a select few have risen to legendary status as some of the greatest mentors in the world of sports as a testament to their coaching excellence.
To reveal the most prominent coaches of the year and of all time, experts at Gambling Zone decided to take a closer look at the managers with the highest win rates throughout their coaching careers. We also note how many titles these coaches have accumulated to unveil the major league coaches with the most successes.
We also delve into the highest-earning coaches, looking at their net worth to determine the wealthiest coaches across all five major sports in 2023.
Most Successful Coaches In 2023
1) Steve Kerr
Sport: NBA
Wins percentage: 67.22%
Steve Kerr is currently the most successful coach across the top five major sports in 2023. The head coach of the Golden State Warriors has won over two-thirds (67.22%) of all his games in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Under his leadership, the Golden State Warriors have entered one of the most successful periods in its history, reaching the NBA Finals six times and winning four championships. The franchise has also broken the record for the most wins in an NBA season after winning 73 games.
2) Bill Belichick
Sport: NFL
Wins percentage: 66.20%
Head coach and general manager of the New England Patriots, Bill Belichick, is the NFL’s longest-tenured active head coach. Throughout his career, he has won over two-thirds (66.20%) of all the games he has coached, including playoffs.
Belichick is one of only three head coaches who have won six NFL titles. Named the NFL ‘Coach of the Year’ for three non-consecutive seasons, it's no wonder he makes it onto this year’s most successful coaches.
3) Andy Reid
Sport: NFL
Wins percentage: 64.20%
Andy Reid ranks third as one of 2023’s most successful coaches. The American football manager has received many accolades for his successes over the years, including two Super Bowl champion awards and one ‘Coach of the Year award.’
Due to his extensive experience in the NFL coaching major teams such as the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers, Reid has accumulated one of the highest win percentages throughout his career, winning just under two-thirds (64.20%) of all his games.
Highest Earning Coaches In 2023
1) José Mourinho
Sport: Football
Net worth: £98,784,600
José Mourinho is the highest-earning coach with an estimated net worth over a whopping £98 million. This is unsurprising as the Portuguese manager is one of the most decorated coaches ever and is widely considered one of the greatest of all time.
After 21 years at the top of European football, Mourinho has won an impressive 26 major trophies, including two Champions League titles and three Premier Leagues. It’s, therefore, no wonder he has a pretty hefty net worth.
2) Jason Kidd
Sport: NBA
Net worth: £69,972,425
Widely regarded as one of the most prominent point guards and passers of all time, Jason Kidd has had a successful career in basketball thus far. Now the head coach for the Dallas Mavericks, Kidd was a ten-time NBA All-Star and a five-time All-NBA First Team member. Included in the Basketball Hall of Fame, he has a net worth of almost £70 million.
3) Bill Belichick
Sport: NFL
Net worth: £49,392,300
With a net worth close to £50 million, NFL coach Bill Belichick completes the top three highest coaches of 2023. Belichick is considered one of the greatest head coaches of our time. He holds many coaching records, with eight Super Bowl victories, the most of any head coach.
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Successful Football Coaches With Most Wins
1) José Mourinho
Wins percentage: 62.12%
Said to be one of the most prominent football coaches in history, José Mourinho tops the list with a win rate of 62.12% so far in his career, scoring almost 700 wins in his lifetime. Having coached world-renowned football teams such as Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Manchester United, the Portuguese professional football manager and former player has coached over 1.1k games.
2) Mircea Lucescu
Wins percentage: 59.55%
With a win rate of 59.55%, Mircea Lucescu ranks second with the most wins. This is unsurprising as the Romanian football manager has coached over 1.5k games across 13 teams, including Inter Milan and Turkey’s national football team. Lucescu currently has a whopping 907 wins, more than any other current managers on the list.
3) Carlo Ancelotti
Wins percentage: 58.81%
One of the most decorated managers in UEFA Champions League history, Carlo Ancelotti has won the trophy a record four times. Having managed top teams such as Juventus, Milan, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Everton, the Italian football manager and former player is also the first and only to manage teams in five Champions League finals.
Unsurprisingly, the current Real Madrid manager has a win rate of 58.81% after coaching nearly 1.3k games and has bagged 764 wins in his career so far.
Successful NHL Coaches With Most Wins
1) Jim Montgomery
Wins percentage: 63.00%
As a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player, Jim Montgomery has won almost two-thirds (63%) of all the 216 games he has coached. Montgomery has managed seven teams both as head and assistant coach in his lifetime, working with teams such as the Dallas Stars, Denver Pioneers, St. Louis Blues and now Boston Bruins.
2) Sheldon Keefe
Wins percentage: 60.40%
Former Tampa Bay Lightning player and now Toronto Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe is notably one of the most successful NHL coaches, winning over 60% of his team’s games. With almost 300 games, Keefe has managed multiple teams, including the Pembroke Lumber Kings, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and the Toronto Marlies.
3) Jay Woodcroft
Wins percentage: 60.40%
In joint second place with a win rate of 60.40%, the professional ice hockey coach Jay Woodcroft is the current manager for the Edmonton Oilers. The Canadian coach not only led his very first team to victory, winning the Stanley Cup as a video coach but has also managed nearly 150 games in his career.
Successful MLB Coaches With Most Wins
1) Dave Roberts
Wins percentage: 63.00%
American professional baseball manager and former outfielder Dave Roberts is the current coach of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Having played in five teams and managed one other, Roberts has plenty of experience in Major League Baseball (MLB). He has won 63% of his games to date after scoring 753 wins since starting his career as a coach.
2) Aaron Boone
Wins percentage: 58.50%
As a former baseball infielder and the current manager of the New York Yankees, Aaron Boone has scored over 58% wins across all the games he has coached to date. The American manager has had an extensive career in baseball, having also been an analyst for ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball and Baseball Tonight for seven years before serving as the Yankees' manager from 2018.
3) Brian Snitker
Wins percentage: 55.90%
With a win rate of over half of the games he has coached thus far, the current Atlanta Braves manager, Brian Snitker completes the top most successful MLB coaches of today. During his playing career, Snitker was primarily a catcher for the Atlanta Braves before becoming a minor-league manager for the Anderson Braves, leading the team to its only winning season after a five-year stint.
Successful NFL Coaches With Most Wins
1) Bill Belichick
Wins percentage: 66.20%
American football coach Bill Belichick grabs first place as one of the most successful NFL coaches today. With nearly 300 wins thus far, the current head coach and general manager of the New England Patriots has won over two-thirds (66.2%) of all the games he has coached in his career.
2) Andy Reid
Wins percentage: 64.20%
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid ranks second with a win rate of 64.20%. During his career, Reid has coached 251 games to success. Regarded as one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, it’s no surprise that the American football coach is the only one to win 100 games while appearing in four consecutive conference championships with two franchises.
3) Sean McDermott
Wins percentage: 64.00%
As the head coach and defensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills, Sean McDermott follows closely behind with 64% wins of all games coached. During his first season, he led the Buffalo Bills to their first playoff appearance since 1999. In doing so, this ended the longest active postseason drought in the four major North American sports.
Successful NBA Coaches With Most Wins
1) Steve Kerr
Wins percentage: 67.22%
Known as one of the legendary coaches in NBA history, Steve Kerr is a nine-time NBA champion. Described as one of the most accurate three-point shooters of all time, Kerr won five titles as a player and four championships as a head coach for the Golden State Warriors.
In 2016, he won the ‘Coach of the Year’ award, and after nine years of coaching, he has won almost 600 matches, including playoffs, which is over two-thirds (67.22%) of all his games in his career.
2) Gregg Popovich
Wins percentage: 63.71%
The head coach for the San Antonio Spurs, Gregg Popovich, makes it on the list as one of the most successful active coaches. He is also the longest-tenured active coach in the NBA and across all other major sports leagues in the US.
Popovich has an impressive track record. He has the most wins of any coach in NBA history, with more than 1.5k wins across his 27 years as a coach. To date, the American professional basketball coach has not only won nearly 64% of all the games he’s coached since the start of his career but has secured five championship wins and three ‘Coach of the Year’ awards.
3) Mike Brown
Wins percentage: 60.54%
Mike Brown is the third most successful active coach in the NBA, with a win rate of 60.54%. He is the head coach for the Sacramento Kings, having previously coached popular teams such as the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his nine years as a coach, Brown has coached over 700 games, including playoffs, winning 445.
Most Successful Football Coaches Of All Time
1) Bill Struth
Wins percentage: 68.52%
Scottish football manager Bill Struth takes first place. Having coached over 1.6k games, he has an overall win rate of nearly 70%. The Scottish football manager coached the second manager of Rangers Football Club.
He led the club for 34 years, winning 30 major trophies, a record 18 Scottish League Championships, 10 Scottish Cups and two Scottish League Cups during his career. This undoubtedly makes him one of the most successful managers in Scottish and British football history,
2) Willie Maley
Wins percentage: 64.45%
The Irish-born Scottish international football player and manager, Willie Maley, is one of the most successful football coaches ever. Much like Struth, Maley also coached over 1.6k games, winning almost two-thirds (64.45%) of all games.
Serving as a manager for 43 consecutive years, Maley is said to be one of the most successful managers in Scottish football history. He was the first manager of Celtic Football Club, leading them to 30 major trophies, including 16 league championships and 14 Scottish Cups.
3) Jock Stein
Wins percentage: 63.31%
Scottish football player and manager John “Jock” Stein was the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup as a coach to Celtic. Coaching over 1k games, Stein won nearly two-thirds (63.31%) of all his games.
Stein also guided Celtic to nine successive Scottish League championships during his career. In his 13 years at Celtic as manager, Stein won the European Cup, 10 Scottish League Championships, eight Scottish Cups and six Scottish League Cups.
Most Successful NHL coaches Of All Time
1) Tom Johnson
Wins percentage: 68.30%
Canadian professional ice hockey player and executive Tom Johnson is the most successful NHL coach ever. He worked with the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a player.
Later, becoming the coach for the Boston Bruins, Johnson won the Stanley Cup a total of eight times both as a player and manager. He coached 230 games during his career, winning over two-thirds (68.30%) of these games.
2) Pete Green
Wins percentage: 62.10%
Winning just over 62% of all the games he coached during his lifetime, professional ice hockey coach and trainer Pete Green ranks as one of the most successful NHL coaches in history. Coach to the Ottawa Hockey Club (also known as the Ottawa Senators), Green won ten Stanley Cup titles in his time with Ottawa, four as a trainer and six as a coach.
3) Cooney Weiland
Wins percentage: 60.20%
Ralph "Cooney" Weiland completes the top three most successful NHL coaches, winning over 60% of all games coached. After playing for top teams in the league, such as the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, and Detroit Red Wings, Weiland stepped into his role as head coach, where he would go on to bring Boston its third Cup.
Named ‘Coach of the Year’ twice, his longest coaching stint was at Harvard University, where he later retired. The same year, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Most Successful MLB Coaches Of All Time
1) Vic Harris
Wins percentage: 66.30%
American professional baseball outfielder and manager in the baseball league for African-Americans, Vic Harris has the highest win percentage, winning over two-thirds (66.30%) of all the games he coached during his career, totalling an impressive 547 wins.
Described as one of the toughest players of his era in black baseball, Harris later managed the Grays first to place eight times, more than any other manager in the league. He was also named the East-West All-Star Game seven times. This is unsurprising, as Harris never had a losing season in 11 seasons as a manager.
2) Rube Foster
Wins percentage: 63.30%
American baseball player, manager, and executive in the baseball league for African-Americans, Andrew "Rube" Foster, won over 63% of all games he ever coached in the league.
Considered the best African-American pitcher of the first decade of the 1900s, Foster later founded and managed the Chicago American Giants, one of the most successful black baseball teams of the pre-integration era. In 1981, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
3) Joe McCarthy
Wins percentage: 61.50%
With 61.50% wins, Joe McCarthy is most renowned for his leadership of the New York Yankees over 15 years. He was the first manager to win pennants with both National and American League teams. He did so with the Chicago Cubs and the Yankees.
McCarthy won nine league pennants and seven World Series championships throughout his career. He recorded a 100-win season six times, and out of his 2,125 career victories, which ranks ninth all-time in major league history for managerial wins, he also ranks first all-time for the Yankees with 1,460 wins. It’s, therefore, no surprise he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Most Successful NFL Coaches Of All Time
1) Guy Chamberlin
Wins percentage: 78.40%
Nicknamed “Champ,” Guy Chamberlin is the most successful National Football League (NFL) coach, winning over a quarter (78.40%) of every game he’s ever coached in the league, the best win percentage of any coach in NFL history with a minimum 50 wins.
As an American former football player and professional coach, Chamberlin succeeded greatly, becoming the only coach to win NFL championships across three different clubs.
2) John Madden
Wins percentage: 75.90%
With a win percentage of over three quarters (75.90%), the American football coach and sports commentator John Madden ranks second as one of the most successful coaches ever.
Madden served as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders for nine years, leading to eight playoffs, seven division titles, seven American Football League (AFL) championship games, and the franchise's first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XI. He never had a losing season and holds the highest percentage among NFL head coaches who have coached at least 100 games.
3) Vince Lombardi
Wins percentage: 73.80%
Recognised as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in American sports history, football coach and executive Vince Lombardi is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers.
Lombardi achieved a win percentage of almost three-quarters (73.80%), leading the Green Bay Packers to three consecutive and five total NFL Championships in seven years. Additionally, they won the first two at the end of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons. It’s, therefore, no wonder he received two NFL ‘Coach of the Year’ awards during his career.
Most Successful NBA Coaches Of All Time
1) Phil Jackson
Wins percentage: 70.15%
Former professional basketball player, coach, and executive Phil Jackson tops the list with an overall win percentage of over two-thirds (70.15%). Having coached for 20 years, Jackson has managed top teams such as the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers, who won five league titles under his leadership.
Jackson has achieved almost 1.4k wins, including playoffs, and has received 11 National Basketball Association (NBA) championship titles as a coach and one NBA ‘Coach of the Year’ award.
2) Billy Cunningham
Wins percentage: 68.87%
Nicknamed the ‘Kangaroo Kid,’ Billy Cunningham was known for his leaping and record-setting rebounding abilities. Described as one of basketball's all-time greats, Cunningham spent 17 seasons with the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers, nine as a player and eight as a coach.
During his career, he won 520 of the games he coached, including playoffs, equating to over two-thirds (68.87%) of wins.
3) K. C. Jones
Wins percentage: 66.12%
Best known for his association with the Boston Celtics, K. C. Jones completes the top three as one of the most successful NBA coaches ever. After coaching for ten years, Jones won over 600 games, including playoffs – over two-thirds (66.12%) of all games coached.
Of his 12 NBA championships, Jones won 11, eight as a player, one as an assistant coach, and two as a head coach. Besides Bill Russell, Jones is the only African-American coach to have won multiple NBA championships. It’s, therefore, no surprise he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1989.
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Methodology
Looking at the top five (Football, NHL, MLB, NFL, NBA) sporting leagues in the world by revenue, we used sources such as Wikipedia and NHL records to compile a list of active coaches and the most successful coaches of all time get the overall wins percentage including playoffs.
We then ranked the win rates for each coach across the different sports to determine who had the most number of successes. Data collection for this was completed on 13/10/2023.
To source the figures for the active coach's estimated net worth in 2023, we used sites such as Celebrity Net Worth and HockeyZonePlus. We used their projected net worth figures for coaches still under contract. Coaches with unavailable net worth data were not added to the list. This data was collected on 17/10/2023.
Please note all currencies were converted from USD to GBP on 17/10/2023 using Google Finance.
