Byfield Among Few Black Managers in English Football
Darren Byfield (second from right) is one of only four black managers in the Premier League and EFL alongside Nuno Espirito Santo, Liam Rosenior, and Colin Kazim-Richards.
Walsall head coach Darren Byfield has expressed his commitment to increasing the number of black managers in football, stating he will "keep knocking on the door louder and louder."
At 49 years old, Byfield is one of only two black managers in the English Football League (EFL), alongside Colin Kazim-Richards, the former Bury, Sheffield United, and Turkey forward, who was appointed head coach at League Two club Crawley Town on Tuesday.
Before Byfield took over from Mat Sadler at Walsall's Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium on 11 March, there were no black managers in the EFL following Darren Moore's dismissal by League One side Port Vale at the end of December.
In the Premier League, West Ham United's Nuno Espirito Santo and Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior are currently the only black managers.
"There's not enough," Byfield, who has been appointed Saddlers head coach until the end of the season, told BBC Radio WM. "But all you can do is keep knocking on the door, and keep knocking on the door louder and louder and louder - and that comes from hard work."
Research Highlights Underrepresentation of Black Managers
Research commissioned in 2024 by the Black Footballers Partnership (BFP), an organisation of current and former black players, revealed significant disparities in football management representation. Despite black players comprising 25% of UEFA-issued coaching qualifications in 2022 and 2023, they accounted for only 4% of all managerial roles in England.
The study examined the off-the-pitch careers of approximately 3,500 former Premier League or Championship players from 1990 to 2010. It found that during this period, non-black players were 50% more likely to enter management than black players.
Delroy Corinaldi, executive director of BFP, commented on the findings:
"A career in football management often looks like a game of Snakes and Ladders, but for black former players, it's pretty much all snakes and no ladders."
As recently as September 2023, following the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo by Nottingham Forest, there were no black managers in the English top flight for the first time since between March and August 2023.
At that time, the anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out warned that English football risked "losing a generation of coaches from a black, Asian or mixed heritage background."
Since then, Nuno has returned to management at West Ham United, and in January, Chelsea appointed former Hull City boss Liam Rosenior on a five-and-a-half-year contract from their sister club in France's Ligue 1, Strasbourg.
To address diversity issues in senior leadership, team operations, and coaching roles, the Football Association (FA) launched the Football Leadership Diversity Code initiative in 2020. Over 50 clubs, including 19 from the Premier League, have signed up to the scheme.
Although the FA reported progress during the first three years, it acknowledged that the pace has been "slower than hoped."
Byfield's Journey Through Non-League Football
Byfield's path into management began in non-league football with spells at Redditch United, Stratford Town, Walsall Wood, and Alvechurch. He credits the lower leagues' environment with shaping his coaching identity.
"I had to train probably once a week on a third of a pitch, so you couldn't even get your ideas across," he said. "But it helped me, shaped me. I was allowed to make mistakes and it wouldn't be publicised. And it's a big thing.
"What came out of that was I knew exactly how I wanted to play. I knew exactly what kind of players I wanted in my team.
"I knew all the fundamentals that were needed, the non-negotiables that would be implemented at a football club and it definitely helps with being a first-team coach."
Currently, there are no black managers in the National League following Sam Cox's dismissal by Wealdstone in February.
Before joining Walsall's coaching staff in summer 2023, Byfield had a brief managerial experience in the EFL through a two-game interim spell at Crawley Town. He said his non-league experience helped him handle the insecurity of that role.
"Being an assistant manager and interim, you've got to get your message across as simple as possible in the best possible way," he explained. "You've got to challenge the players, you've got to get them to adopt a winning mentality.
"You have to articulate the right way because the days of screaming at them and talking to them in a disgusting way are out the window, we have to keep encouraging them and challenging them on what's right and what's wrong."
Byfield's Commitment to Change
Byfield's future at Walsall beyond the current season remains uncertain, but with promotion to League One still achievable—the gap to the play-offs is two points with seven games remaining—there is much to pursue.
Off the field, Byfield is focused on maintaining attention on increasing opportunities for black players to transition into coaching and management roles.
"There can't be so many black players and not so many coaches and managers. No-one's asking to be given anything. It's just to be viewed as equal," he said.
"I know a few that have got pro licences and can't even get an interview for a job. Something has to change because no one's asking for gimmies or handouts.
"It's like we're doing our work here, just let us be seen and hopefully it will and I believe it will change.
"I'll keep banging that drum and if it helps other people of minority see another black face in the dugout and encourages them, then that's great."
Sam Cox was dismissed by National League club Wealdstone in February after only eight months in charge, leaving the fifth tier without any black managers.
