Steve Bould Joins as Head of Defensive Coaching & 1st Team Coach..
Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2025 2:21 pm
Interesting appointment, welcome to the R's & good luck...
From the Club...
'QPR are delighted to confirm Steve Bould has joined the club as Head of Defensive Coaching & First Team Coach.
The former defender, who enjoyed the vast majority of his 20-year playing career in England’s top flight with
Stoke City, Arsenal and Sunderland, takes on a new role at QPR which will see him coach at all levels, from the first
team right through to the younger academy age groups.
The position is focused on the long-term development of players up and down the club’s structure while Bould will
also be a valuable member of the first-team coaching staff.
“I'm delighted,” Bould said. “I think it's a great opportunity because number one, and I don't say this lightly, QPR is
a great football club and always has been.
“Loftus Road is a great ground and the club has a real loyal following.
“I've looked around today and I can see that there's a real buzz about the place. The training ground is fantastic,
the whole set-up is.
“It has a family feel as well. Coming in here just feels like family. It's quite unusual, I have to tell you.”
Bould believes his decorated past as a player – he won the top flight three times with the Gunners as well as the
FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup – is irrelevant when it comes to his coaching.
“The only respect you get is if you can give the players something that they take with them,” he said. “They don't
give you any respect for your career. Most of them don't know it anyway!”
As a coach, Bould worked right through the younger age groups with Arsenal, including their U18s and U23s.
He also spent seven years as Arsène Wenger’s assistant between 2012 and 2019.
He was Lommel SK’s head coach in Belgium between 2022 and 2025.
Discussing his new role with Rangers, Bould said: “In my opinion, and this is part of the brief, football now is very,
very tactical - and it's great.
“Throughout the coaching system we have all had to up our game but I think one thing that has been forgotten is the
actual technique of defending individually.
“So I think there's a place, from the younger ages, to maybe instil a bit of that within them. I'm really looking forward
to trying to help them understand the technique of defending.
“All our generation was guided by older players – we played against them from a much younger age than players do now.
So we learnt the game off them. I'm hoping to teach those little nuances that they taught me as early as we can.”
Bould is clear in terms of his targets as he looks to the future with QPR.
“Firstly, the first team defensively to become better,” he said. “If the individuals within that squad can get better
defensively, that’s the number one priority.
“Secondly, I want the younger players further down the line to become great players or great defenders.
“That's the brief. It's a big brief and I'm looking forward to it immensely.”
CEO Christian Nourry said: “I could not be happier to announce that Steve has chosen to join our club today.
“In Steve, we have a world-class coach in the building. His appointment will allow for us to further specialise the
coaching up and down the football structure.
“We believe that this appointment will have a positive effect on our first-team performances this season, and - in
the medium-to-long term - enable us to develop talent into some of the most exciting defensive prospects in the country.”
From the Club...
'QPR are delighted to confirm Steve Bould has joined the club as Head of Defensive Coaching & First Team Coach.
The former defender, who enjoyed the vast majority of his 20-year playing career in England’s top flight with
Stoke City, Arsenal and Sunderland, takes on a new role at QPR which will see him coach at all levels, from the first
team right through to the younger academy age groups.
The position is focused on the long-term development of players up and down the club’s structure while Bould will
also be a valuable member of the first-team coaching staff.
“I'm delighted,” Bould said. “I think it's a great opportunity because number one, and I don't say this lightly, QPR is
a great football club and always has been.
“Loftus Road is a great ground and the club has a real loyal following.
“I've looked around today and I can see that there's a real buzz about the place. The training ground is fantastic,
the whole set-up is.
“It has a family feel as well. Coming in here just feels like family. It's quite unusual, I have to tell you.”
Bould believes his decorated past as a player – he won the top flight three times with the Gunners as well as the
FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup – is irrelevant when it comes to his coaching.
“The only respect you get is if you can give the players something that they take with them,” he said. “They don't
give you any respect for your career. Most of them don't know it anyway!”
As a coach, Bould worked right through the younger age groups with Arsenal, including their U18s and U23s.
He also spent seven years as Arsène Wenger’s assistant between 2012 and 2019.
He was Lommel SK’s head coach in Belgium between 2022 and 2025.
Discussing his new role with Rangers, Bould said: “In my opinion, and this is part of the brief, football now is very,
very tactical - and it's great.
“Throughout the coaching system we have all had to up our game but I think one thing that has been forgotten is the
actual technique of defending individually.
“So I think there's a place, from the younger ages, to maybe instil a bit of that within them. I'm really looking forward
to trying to help them understand the technique of defending.
“All our generation was guided by older players – we played against them from a much younger age than players do now.
So we learnt the game off them. I'm hoping to teach those little nuances that they taught me as early as we can.”
Bould is clear in terms of his targets as he looks to the future with QPR.
“Firstly, the first team defensively to become better,” he said. “If the individuals within that squad can get better
defensively, that’s the number one priority.
“Secondly, I want the younger players further down the line to become great players or great defenders.
“That's the brief. It's a big brief and I'm looking forward to it immensely.”
CEO Christian Nourry said: “I could not be happier to announce that Steve has chosen to join our club today.
“In Steve, we have a world-class coach in the building. His appointment will allow for us to further specialise the
coaching up and down the football structure.
“We believe that this appointment will have a positive effect on our first-team performances this season, and - in
the medium-to-long term - enable us to develop talent into some of the most exciting defensive prospects in the country.”