Hans Roland "Hasse" Backe (; born 14 February 1952) is a Swedish football manager and former player who most recently led Finland's national team. Prior to this he managed the New York Red Bulls.

He has coached clubs in Sweden, Norway, Greece, England and the United States, and achieved his greatest successes in Denmark at Copenhagen and Aalborg.

Playing career Backe's playing career lasted through the 1970s, mostly in the Swedish lower divisions, including one stint with Brommapojkarna in 1977–1978. He took up coaching while playing for Bro, and led them from the fifth to the third tier.

Managerial career

Early career in Scandinavia Backe began his managerial career with Djurgården in his native Sweden from 1982 to 1984, compiling a record of 38 wins, 20 draws and only 12 losses, which included a first-place finish in the 1982 Division 2 Norra. Following his early success with Djurgården he went on to manage Molde, Hammarby IF, Öster, AIK and numerous other top Scandinavian clubs. In 1989, he led Öster to a first-place finish in Division 1 Södra in which the club ended the season unbeaten in all 26 league matches and gained promotion to the Swedish Allsvenskan.

Denmark He enjoyed his greatest success in Denmark, having won three Danish titles with Copenhagen and Aalborg. In his first season in Danish football Backe led Aalborg to the 1998–99 Danish Superliga title. He also helped guide the club to consecutive Danish Cup finals in his two years at the club. During the 2001 season Backe returned to Denmark to lead top side Copenhagen. During his time at the club, the Danish side would enjoy one of the club's most successful spells. During this period, Backe led Copenhagen to two Danish Superliga titles, one Danish Cup title and two Danish Super Cup titles, which included a treble winning season during the 2003–04 season. He subsequently led the club to the inaugural Royal League title in 2004–05, defeating IFK Göteborg on penalties in the final.

Panathinaikos Backe was the manager of Panathinaikos in Athens until 14 September 2006, when he was fired after just three games due to the team's poor performance in this time. Although Panathinaikos won two of three league matches, a 2–0 home loss to Ionikos and a 1–1 draw at home in a UEFA Cup tie against Ukrainian side Metalurh Zaporizhzhia led to his dismissal.

Assistant to Sven-Göran Eriksson In July 2007, he was appointed as assistant manager at Manchester City in the Premier League, working alongside fellow countryman Sven-Göran Eriksson. Prior to being appointed as Manchester City assistant manager, he worked as a senior advisor for Östers, as well as a football analyst and commentator for Swedish TV4. Backe briefly resigned his position at Manchester City after a family crisis in Sweden forced him to take compassionate leave shortly into his time at the club, but after a month was able to return at his former post. Along with Eriksson, Backe and first-team coach Tord Grip parted company with Manchester City, joining Mexico with the two Swedes.

Notts County On 27 October 2009, Backe was appointed as manager of Notts County; the Swedish coach signed a three-year contract with the club.County confirm Backe He resigned just seven weeks later, on 15 December after a dispute about wages not being paid was announced. During his time with Notts County, Backe compiled four wins (including two FA Cup wins), three draws and two losses.

New York Red Bulls On 7 January 2010, Backe was named manager of New York Red Bulls. After a blistering start to the 2010 season, club fans began to create shirts and flags with his likeness, and these honors culminated in the birth of the Hans Backe Viking Army, an offshoot of the Empire Supporters Club and Garden State Supporters. In his first season with New York, he coached the team to an Eastern Conference first-place finish. Then, on 9 November 2012, it was announced that Backe would not extend his contract with the Red Bulls.

Finland On 12 August 2015, Backe was named manager of Finland national football team, starting on 1 January 2016.Hans Backe appointed head coach of Finland men's national team His first official match with the team was held on 10 January 2016 and ended in a 0-3 defeat by Sweden. Backe was fired as head coach of Finland's national football team 12 December 2016. Finland did not win one single game during Backe's time as head coach; 11 matches resulted in 9 defeats and 2 draws.

Managerial statistics

TeamFromToRecordPWDLWin %DjurgårdenJanuary 1982December 1984MoldeApril 1985October 1986HammarbyJanuary 1987December 1988ÖsterJanuary 1989December 1993AIKJanuary 1994June 1995StabækApril 1996October 1997Aalborg1 January 199830 June 2000SV Salzburg1 July 200010 September 2001Copenhagen17 September 200131 December 2005Panathinaikos1 July 200614 September 2006Notts County27 October 200915 December 2009New York Red Bulls7 January 20109 November 2012Finland1 January 201612 December 2016Total

Honours

Manager Djurgården Division 2 Norra: 1982 Öster Division 1 Södra: 1989 Aalborg Danish Superliga: 1998–99 Copenhagen Danish Superliga: 2002–03, 2003–04 Danish Cup: 2004 Danish Super Cup: 2001, 2004 Royal League: 2004–05 New York Red Bulls Eastern Conference Regular Season: 2010

References