West Ham United have turned to one of their own. The club has named former captain Scott Parker as its new head coach, only a day after parting ways with Nuno Espírito Santo, according to Punch.
The club announced the appointment on its website on Wednesday. Parker, who is 46, has signed a contract that runs for two and a half years. He is expected to be in the dugout on Wednesday evening for the EFL Championship game against Cardiff City.
A promotion specialist comes home
Parker comes back after managing Fulham, AFC Bournemouth and Burnley. Punch reports that he took each of those clubs from the Championship up to the Premier League: Fulham in 2020, Bournemouth in 2022 and Burnley in 2025. He was also named EFL Championship Manager of the Season in 2024/25 for his work at Burnley.
As a player, he turned out 129 times for West Ham between 2007 and 2011 and won the Hammer of the Year award three years in a row. He also took the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year award for 2010/11, making him only the second West Ham player to win it, after Bobby Moore.
Backroom team
West Ham said first-team coaches Steve Potts, Gerard Prenderville and Billy Lepine will assist Parker, and his former team-mate Mark Noble will work closely with him. The club added that more details of the permanent backroom structure will come in due course.
Parker on his return
In the club's statement, Parker called the appointment a proud moment. He said: "It is a very proud moment for me to step into this role and return to a Club that means so much to me and my family. A lot of very fond memories of my time here – four years of probably the best football I played in my career."
He went on: "There was a warmth, a love, a feeling that I probably didn't have anywhere else. There was something which stood out constantly and that was the relationship that I built up with the fanbase here. That rapport and respect, that I felt instantly."
He continued: "More than anything, this is an opportunity that I am very excited about. I feel privileged and honoured to be the guy that wants to lead us back to the Premier League and be the Head Coach of this Football Club at this moment in time."
Parker also said: "From my first calls with Karim [Virani] and Daniel [Křetínský], it was clear they have a shared vision and desire to return the Club to the Premier League as quickly as possible. I share that ambition and I'm very confident we can achieve it."
On the challenge ahead, he said: "I've been in this division three times and I've got out of this division three times. This is a tough division, there is absolutely no denying it. And I will use every ounce of my experience, every ounce of my knowledge, to have an understanding of what we're going to need to bring consistency."
He added: "And that's going to be the key word for all of us really. The consistency of what we do and the commitment levels that we go to will give us the best opportunity to get out of this division and be the team that we can be."
