Régis Le Bris
French manager and former footballer (born 1975)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Régis Le Bris (born 6 December 1975) is a French professional football manager and former player who is currently the head coach of Premier League club Sunderland.[1][2]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 6 December 1975 | ||
| Place of birth | Pont-l'Abbé, Brittany, France | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Sunderland (head coach) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1987 | US Plonéour | ||
| 1987–19?? | AS Ergué-Armel | ||
| 19??–1991 | Quimper | ||
| 1991–1994 | Rennes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1993–1999 | Rennes B | 109 | (2) |
| 1994–1999 | Rennes | 31 | (0) |
| 1999–2002 | Laval | 52 | (0) |
| 2002–2003 | KSK Ronse | 5 | (0) |
| Total | 197 | (2) | |
| International career | |||
| 1990–1991 | France U15 | 2 | (0) |
| 1991–1992 | France U16 | 3 | (0) |
| 1992–1993 | France U17 | 5 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2015–2022 | Lorient B | ||
| 2022–2024 | Lorient | ||
| 2024– | Sunderland | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
Le Bris grew up in Plonéour-Lanvern, a commune in the west of Brittany. He first began playing youth football for local side US Plonéour, before joining AS Ergué-Armel at the age of 12, and later Quimper.[3]
In 1991, he joined the youth ranks of Rennes, where he would play primarily with the B team, but with whom he would also make his senior debut in 1994 and sign his first professional contract at the age of 21.[4] Le Bris made a total of 31 Division 1 appearances for Rennes, across five seasons with the first team.[5]
In April 1999, despite still having two years left on his contract at Rennes, Le Bris opted to join nearby Division 2 side Laval, signing a three-year deal with the club and joining up with previous teammates Ulrich Le Pen and Mickaël Buzaré.[6] Le Bris struggled for consistent game time at Laval, only making a total of 52 league appearances across three seasons with the club,[7] though it was there that he would meet future friend and colleague Franck Haise.[8]
Le Bris played his last professional football with Belgian second division side KSK Ronse, retiring in 2003 to focus on youth coaching.[9]
International career
Le Bris played in multiple different France youth representative sides,[10] including representing the France under-16 team at the 1991 Montaigu Tournament.[11]
Managerial career
Rennes and Lorient
Le Bris became a certified sports coach in 2004,[12] and started his managerial career as a youth coach for Wasquehal, before joining the youth sector of Rennes in the same role.[9] During his stint with the club's under-19 squad, he led the team to the victory of the Championnat National U19 in 2007, before winning the Coupe Gambardella the following year.[9][10]
In July 2012, after rejecting an offer to renew his contract with Rennes,[9] Le Bris was appointed as the head of youth development at Lorient.[9][10] He also served as the coach of the under-17 squad, with whom he would win the Championnat National U17 with in 2015, before being appointed as the manager of the club's reserve team later the same year.[9][10] While serving in the role, he coached several footballers who would go on to play for the first team, including Mattéo Guendouzi, Illan Meslier, Alexis Claude-Maurice and Enzo Le Fée.[9][10]
In May 2022, Le Bris obtained a professional coaching licence;[9][13] on 27 June of the same year, he was appointed as the head coach of Lorient's first team, signing a three-year contract.[10][14] In his first season at the club, he led the team to a tenth-place finish in Ligue 1;[1] in March 2023, he extended his contract with Lorient until 2027.[15][16] Following their relegation to the Ligue 2 at the end of the 2023–24 campaign,[17][18] Le Bris officially left the club by mutual consent on 22 June 2024.[19][20]
Sunderland
On 22 June 2024, it was announced that Le Bris would be appointed as the head coach of EFL Championship club Sunderland on 1 July, signing a three-year contract in the process.[1][2][21] Under Le Bris, the club started off strong, reaching an unbeaten record in the first month of the season and scoring ten goals while conceding only one; Le Bris was thus awarded the EFL Championship Manager of the Month for August.[22] Le Bris ultimately guided Sunderland back to the Premier League after an eight year absence, winning the play-off final 2–1 against Sheffield United on 24 May 2025.[23] In the 2025–26 season, Le Bris guided Sunderland to a seventh-place finish in the league, securing qualification for the 2026–27 UEFA Europa League.[24]
Personal life
Le Bris is the brother of fellow former footballer Benoît Le Bris,[9][25] as well as the uncle of Théo Le Bris, whom he managed at Lorient.[25]
In 2006, he obtained a doctorate in sport physiology and biomechanics at Rennes 2 University,[9] having presented a study on accelerometer-based running as his thesis.[26] He graduated with a diplôme universitaire (DU) in the mental training of high-level athletes, from the same university in 2010.[9]
Managerial statistics
- As of match played 23 May 2026
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Lorient | 27 June 2022 | 22 June 2024 | 76 | 23 | 20 | 33 | 30.3 | [27][failed verification] |
| Sunderland | 1 July 2024 | Present | 93 | 38 | 28 | 27 | 40.9 | [28] |
| Total | 169 | 61 | 48 | 60 | 36.1 | |||