Connor O'Halloran

Mar 27, 2026, 10:37 AM ET

They say you should never go back. Only in veteran football manager Roy Hodgson's case, you do ... just not for nearly half a century, as news broke Friday that he was returning to manage a team , Bristol City, after a 44-year gap since his last spell with them.

Hodgson has had plenty of coaching stops in his managerial career -- in fact, he's had 21 different head coach roles over a 50-year career, including spells at Inter Milan, Liverpool and the England national team. His last stop, at Premier League side Crystal Palace , ended in February 2024. It looked like that was that. Last year in an interview with Sky Sports, he said: "I don't want to be Frank Sinatra and keep retiring."

Then came Friday's announcement: Hodgson, aged 78, will return to the touchline to take charge of Bristol City's final seven games of the 2025-26 English Football Championship season.…