Popovic was offered a new four-year Socceroos contract. This is why he said no

September 8, 2026 — 4:00pmSocceroos coach Tony Popovic has revealed he turned down a new four-year deal to stay on until the 2030 World Cup in favour of a short-term contract extension, declaring he would be happy to walk away from the job as soon as it expires, knowing the legacy he will leave behind.In his first press conference since Australia’s controversial World Cup exit, Popovic said Football Australia had offered to retain him until the 2030 tournament, but he preferred to re-sign only until the end of January’s Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, giving both parties a chance to then reassess.“I love coaching the Socceroos,” Popovic said on Tuesday, answering a direct question as to whether he would like to stay on.“It was my choice to go until the Asian Cup. Although I was offered a four-year deal, I decided to go to the Asian Cup. That’s something I think is good, and it also gives the FA an opportunity; if they want to go in a different direction, they can.Scroll to the bottom for a full transcript of Tony Popovic’s hour-long press conference.“I’m very comfortable with the decision that’s been made. I’m very comfortable with how I’ve always worked for the future … if I leave a week later, I’ll still be comfortable with that.”Popovic’s extension was announced on the eve of the World Cup. His revelation shows that FA was prepared to entrust him with another full cycle before seeing how Australia performed at the tournament.Socceroos coach Tony Popovic on Tuesday.Dominic LorrimerHe said he was not concerned about his own job security. If he was, Popovic said he would have selected different players in his World Cup squad, instead of fielding four of the eight youngest starting XIs at the tournament.Popovic’s rationale was to accelerate the development of a young core capable of taking Australia further at the 2030 and 2034 World Cups, even though he knew he was unlikely to be in the coaching role for them.Fourteen players involved in the decisive June 2025 qualifiers against Japan and Saudi Arabia did not make Popovic’s World Cup squad, with the subsequent turnover designed to give players such as Lucas Herrington, Nestory Irankunda, Paul Okon-Engstler and Mohamed Toure experience at the game’s highest level - years before they reach their prime.Tony Popovic’s Socceroos were knocked out by Egypt in the round of 32.Getty Images“That needs to happen,” Popovic said. “We need to create a pool of players that in four years, if we are fortunate enough to be at a World Cup … then you want to be in a better position with the starting players and the players that can come on and make a difference.”Popovic intends to continue that policy regardless of his contract status, flagging “a few fresh faces” for the upcoming friendlies against Brazil in Queensland later this month, and another youthful squad for the Asian Cup, at which he has set a minimum target of reaching the semi-finals.As for what happened in the United States, Popovic said he could understand the angry reaction from some pundits and fans towards Australia’s heartbreaking round of 32 exit against Egypt, but provided a strident defence of his selections and tactics.Popovic’s only real regret from the World Cup, he said in his hour-long media conference, was not making more changes for the Socceroos’ second group stage match against the USA.Socceroos coach Tony Popovic speaking on Tuesday.Dominic LorrimerAfter shocking Turkey 2-0 in their opening game, Popovic controversially benched goalscorers Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe in favour of Mathew Leckie and Nishan Veliupillay for the much-anticipated showdown with the World Cup co-hosts, in which the Socceroos were “outrun, outfought, out-duelled … whatever you want to call it,” he said.In retrospect, he says two changes weren’t enough.“Part of me thinks I should have made more changes to the line-up, because I could sense the euphoria [from the Turkey win] and what it took out of a young group leading into the game,” Popovic said on Tuesday in his first press conference since the end of the World Cup.“We looked really fatigued in training. Maybe that’s the one I thought, I should have made more, and I felt that in the first half, after about five or 10 minutes, that we looked flat.”Tony Popovic celebrates after Australia secured their spot in the last 32 of the World Cup.APIf he had his time again, Popovic said he would have played Australia’s penalty shootout against Egypt exactly the same way: with goalkeeper Maty Ryan subbed on late for Patrick Beach, and with Harry Souttar and Herrington, the two players who missed their spot kicks, still among his five penalty takers.But Popovic stopped short of offering a full mea culpa: Irankunda and Metcalfe were restored to the starting XI for their next clash against Paruguay, and played well, and he suggested that was at least partly because they were physically fresh.Where the Socceroos came up short, Popovic said, was in endurance and depth.Across the six months leading into the World Cup, Popovic said Australia’s attacking players had completed just 23 full matches at club between them - and 10 of them were by Ajdin Hrustic alone - which meant the Socceroos were unable to sustain their intensity deep into games.“When it gets to that 60th or 70th-minute mark ... they are fatigued, they are exhausted, they have nothing left,” he said.“That’s what we had. We knew that before the World Cup, and we knew we’d have to juggle those players through games to try and get the best out of them and to have an impact.”Whereas Popovic felt his substitutes made a strong impact in their group stage fixtures, the players he sent on against Egypt were unable to make the same contribution, while the opposition’s bench players did - and that dynamic was exacerbated by the loss of star wing-back Jordan Bos, Australia’s most physically impressive player, to injury.But Popovic agreed with most Socceroos fans on one point: they had let a golden opportunity to secure Australia’s maiden World Cup knockout victory slip.“We weren’t good (on the day) enough to beat Egypt, so that’s why we are disappointed,” he said.“You can lose those games, and if your opponent’s better, they’re better - but they weren’t. We were on par with them, and it’s a game we could have won.” More:Australian soccerSocceroosFIFA World CupFootball AustraliaFrom our partners