Andoni Iraola in 2026: Net worth and Salary, Wife, Style Of Play, Teams Coached, and FAQs

Andoni Iraola has quietly turned into one of the most respected football managers in Europe. The Basque coach, who built his name through a long playing career at Athletic Bilbao before swapping the boots for a clipboard, has spent the last three seasons at AFC Bournemouth doing things very few people thought possible at the Vitality Stadium. As the 2025/26 season heads to its final stretch, his story has taken another twist. Iraola has confirmed he is leaving Bournemouth at the end of the campaign, and the football world is now watching closely to see where he ends up next.

Net Worth and Salary in 2026

Iraola is one of the higher earners in the Premier League managerial pool, even though his club, Bournemouth, sits well outside the traditional financial heavyweights. Icon Polls estimates that his net worth in 2026 sits between $5 million and $7 million. That figure takes into account his playing earnings during 12 seasons at Athletic Bilbao, his short spell at New York City FC, and the wages he has pulled in from his coaching jobs at AEK Larnaca, Mirandes, Rayo Vallecano, and Bournemouth.

His base salary at Bournemouth was reported at around £1.5 million per year when he first arrived in 2023. After a stunning debut campaign in the Premier League, the club raised that figure to roughly £2.5 million per year, with bonuses tied to staying up and qualifying for European competition. With his contract running out in June 2026 and elite clubs sniffing around, his next deal is expected to push him into the £5 million to £7 million per year bracket, depending on where he lands.

Wife and Family Life

Iraola is famously low-key about his personal life. He is married to his long-time partner Itziar, and the couple have two young children, a son and a daughter. The family moved with him to England when he took the Bournemouth job in 2023, and he has spoken openly about how grounded his wife keeps him during a job that pretty much never switches off.

He once joked that Itziar teases him because he often pulls a pen and paper out of his jeans pocket in the middle of family walks just to scribble down a tactical idea. He has also been spotted in lovely community moments, including stepping in to run the line at his daughter's school football match. For a man who runs a Premier League dressing room, he comes across as remarkably normal.

Style Of Play

If you have watched Bournemouth in the last three seasons, you already know what an Iraola side looks like. He favours a 4-3-3 shape, sometimes shifting to a 4-2-3-1, and his teams are built around relentless pressing, fast vertical attacks, and quick recoveries of the ball. He wants his players to win the ball as high up the pitch as possible, then go for the throat within a few seconds.

It is not pretty possession football for the sake of it. It is direct, brave, and physically demanding, which is why Iraola spends so much time on training-ground intensity. His Bournemouth side ended Manchester City's 32-game unbeaten domestic run in November and beat league leaders Arsenal 2-1 in April 2026, which tells you everything you need to know about how dangerous his approach can be on its day.

Tactically, his work has drawn comparisons to Marcelo Bielsa, who actually coached him at Athletic Bilbao. The DNA is similar: aggressive press, energetic midfielders, full-backs who fly forward, and forwards who run the channels constantly.

Teams Coached

Iraola's coaching journey has been steady rather than instant. He has worked his way up the ladder, learning brutal lessons early before rising to the Premier League.

He took his first head coach job at AEK Larnaca in Cyprus in June 2018. It did not go well. After a poor run with no wins for nearly two months, he was sacked in January 2019. The next stop was Mirandes in the Spanish Segunda Division in July 2019, where he genuinely turned heads. He pushed the small club to the Copa del Rey semi-finals, beating top-flight opponents like Celta, Sevilla, and Villarreal along the way.

Rayo Vallecano hired him in August 2020. He won them promotion back to La Liga through the play-offs in 2021 and led them to another cup semi-final, only the second time in the club's history. He left at the end of the 2022/23 season after turning down a renewal.

Bournemouth came knocking in June 2023, and the rest is genuinely Premier League folklore in the making. He guided the Cherries to a club-record points haul in his first season, then broke that record again in his second campaign, and built a side that fully competes against the league's biggest names in 2025/26.

Going: Why Iraola Is Leaving Bournemouth

On 14 April 2026, Iraola confirmed what many had been quietly expecting. He is leaving Bournemouth at the end of the season. His contract was running out in June anyway, and he turned down several offers from the club to extend it. He told the players first, on a Tuesday afternoon, before the news became public the next morning.

In his statement on the club website, he said it simply felt like the right moment to step away. Icon Polls understands that the club tried hard to keep him, with talks reportedly opening more than 15 months before his decision, but Iraola wanted to wait until later in the campaign before making the call.

Where next? Athletic Bilbao, his old club, are in the market for a new manager as Ernesto Valverde is set to depart. There is real love between Iraola and the Basque side, where he played 510 competitive matches and captained them in the 2015 Copa del Rey final. He has also been linked with Manchester United and other Premier League clubs. Financial analysts suggest he is likely to earn between £5 million and £7 million per year wherever he lands next.

Frequently Asked Questions About Andoni Iraola

1. Who is Andoni Iraola?

Andoni Iraola is a Spanish football manager and former professional footballer. He is currently the head coach of Premier League club AFC Bournemouth, although he is set to leave the club at the end of the 2025/26 season.

2. How old is Andoni Iraola in 2026?

Iraola was born on 22 June 1982, which makes him 43 years old in 2026.

3. Where is Andoni Iraola from?

He was born in Usurbil, a small town in Gipuzkoa in the Basque Country, Spain.

4. What is Andoni Iraola's net worth in 2026?

Icon Polls estimates that Andoni Iraola's net worth in 2026 is somewhere between $5 million and $7 million, built from his long playing career and his rising salary as a coach.

5. How much does Andoni Iraola earn at Bournemouth?

His current base salary at Bournemouth is reported to be around £2.5 million per year, with extra bonuses available for staying in the league and qualifying for European football.

6. Is Andoni Iraola married?

Yes, Iraola is married to his wife Itziar. The couple have been together for years and keep their personal life mostly out of the public eye.

7. Does Andoni Iraola have children?

Yes, he has two young children, a son and a daughter. The family lives with him in England.

8. Did Andoni Iraola play professional football?

Yes, he had a long playing career as a right-back, mostly at Athletic Bilbao, where he played 510 competitive matches across 12 seasons. He also played briefly for New York City FC before retiring in 2016.

9. Did Andoni Iraola play for the Spain national team?

Yes, he earned 7 caps for Spain. He came close to making the squad for Euro 2012 but missed out due to injury.

10. What is Andoni Iraola's preferred formation?

His teams normally line up in a 4-3-3, although he sometimes uses a 4-2-3-1. His football is built around high pressing and quick transitions.

11. Which teams has Andoni Iraola coached?

He has coached four senior clubs: AEK Larnaca in Cyprus, Mirandes and Rayo Vallecano in Spain, and AFC Bournemouth in England.

12. When did Andoni Iraola join Bournemouth?

He was appointed manager of Bournemouth on 19 June 2023, replacing Gary O'Neil.

13. Why is Andoni Iraola leaving Bournemouth?

Iraola announced on 14 April 2026 that he would leave Bournemouth at the end of the season. His contract was expiring in June, and he turned down multiple offers to extend his stay, saying it felt like the right time to move on.

14. Where is Andoni Iraola going next?

He has been heavily linked with a return to Athletic Bilbao, his former club, as well as Manchester United and other Premier League sides. Icon Polls findings suggest a Premier League move or a Bilbao homecoming are the strongest possibilities.

15. Did Iraola really beat Manchester City and Arsenal?

Yes. His Bournemouth side beat Manchester City 2-1 in November 2025, ending City's 32-game unbeaten domestic run, and he also led the club to a 2-1 away win over leaders Arsenal on 11 April 2026.

16. Who did Andoni Iraola play with as a youth?

He played as a youth at Antiguoko alongside future stars like Mikel Arteta, Xabi Alonso, and Aritz Aduriz, which is a remarkable list when you consider how all of them turned out.

17. What were Iraola's biggest achievements as a player?

He helped Athletic Bilbao reach the 2012 UEFA Europa League final and three Copa del Rey finals. He also captained the side in his final match, the 2015 Copa del Rey final against Barcelona.

18. Who is Andoni Iraola's coaching idol?

He has often spoken about being heavily influenced by Marcelo Bielsa, who managed him at Athletic Bilbao. Bielsa's high-pressing, intense football clearly inspired the way Iraola sets up his own teams.

19. What is Andoni Iraola's biggest strength as a coach?

His biggest strength is getting the absolute most out of squads with limited resources. He builds intense, organised teams that compete with sides who spend three or four times more on players.

20. What happens to Bournemouth after Andoni Iraola leaves?

Bournemouth have been preparing for life after Iraola for over a year. Reports suggest former RB Salzburg and Borussia Dortmund boss Marco Rose is on a shortlist of three candidates being considered to replace him.

21. Has Andoni Iraola won any major trophies as a manager?

He has not yet won a major senior trophy, but he has earned promotion with Rayo Vallecano and reached two domestic cup semi-finals (with Mirandes and Rayo). His reputation comes from over-performing rather than silverware so far.