Jose Mourinho sacked by Fenerbahce after Champions League qualifying exit

Jose Mourinho has been sacked by Fenerbahce after failing to qualify for the Champions League.

Fenerbahce were beaten 1-0 by Benfica over two legs in the play-offs for the Champions League and will play in the Europa League this season. The Turkish side drew the first leg in Istanbul 0-0 but were beaten 1-0 in Portugal on Wednesday to be demoted to Europe's second-tier competition.

Mourinho was hired by Fenerbahce in June 2024 and leaves after winning 37 of his 62 games in charge. The 62-year-old guided his side to second in the Turkish Super Lig last season, while they only reached the last-16 of the Europa League and were knocked out of the Turkish Cup in the quarter-finals.

Fenerbahce said in a statement: "Our Professional Football First Team's technical director, Jose Mourinho, who has been carrying out his duties starting from the 2024-2025 season, has parted ways with us. We thank him for his efforts for our team until today and wish him success in his future career. Fenerbahçe Sports Club."

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Fenerbahce have acted just two games into the league season, with the team seventh after one win and one draw. His time in Istanbul has been typically controversial, with the Portuguese boss regularly making headlines through his behaviour.

The former Chelsea, Tottenham and United boss was handed a £12,000 fine and a two-match touchline ban in March following a fiery derby against Galatasaray in which he was found to have "accused Turkish football of chaos and disorder with insulting and offensive statements towards both the Turkish football community and all Turkish referees".

Mourinho also ended up filing a lawsuit against Galatasaray for around £41,000 after the club accused him of making racist statements. He said the Galatasaray bench had been "jumping like monkeys", but claimed his words were "completely taken out of context".

Mourinho, who had signed a two-year contract with Fenerbahce last summer, follows fellow former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in losing his job after the Norwegian was sacked by Besiktas on Thursday night. He was recently linked with a move to Nottingham Forest following the fallout between manager Nuno Espirito Santo and owner Evangelos Marinakis.

Speaking after the 1-0 defeat by Benfica, which ultimately cost him his job, Mourinho said: “It is a club that knows this type of game, and obviously there is sadness in not being able to do it, but for me, I am aware that we lost against a team that is better than us.

“We had chances, but then we were reduced to 10 men and the game was over. But I think overall, the better team went through.”

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