Kenny Jackett, the former Watford and Wales player who managed seven clubs including Wolverhampton Wanderers, Millwall and Swansea City, has died at the age of 64.
Jackett won 31 caps for Wales during a playing career that was entirely spent with his local club Watford. He began his managerial journey with the Hornets in 1996 and went on to take charge of more than 900 matches across spells with seven different clubs, most recently Leyton Orient.
Playing career highlights
An accomplished left-footed defensive midfielder, Jackett was a key part of Watford's most successful era. Under Graham Taylor, the club secured promotion to the top flight in 1982, finished runners-up in the First Division the following season, and reached the FA Cup final in 1984, where they lost to Everton.
Managerial journey
After retiring as a player, Jackett joined Watford's coaching staff and managed the first team during the 1996-97 season, finishing 13th in the third tier before being demoted back to the coaching ranks.
His managerial career truly flourished at Swansea City, where he built a strong side that won promotion from League Two in 2005. He resigned in February 2007 and soon joined Millwall, leading the Lions to two consecutive League One playoff finals. They won the second in 2009, securing promotion to the Championship. Jackett also guided Millwall to an FA Cup semi-final in 2012-13 before resigning after a late-season slump.
In the summer of 2013, Jackett took over at Wolves, who had just been relegated to League One. He engineered a remarkable turnaround, leading the club to the League One title with a then-record 103 points. A seventh-placed finish in the Championship followed, but he was dismissed in 2016 after the club was taken over by Chinese conglomerate Fosun International.
After a brief stint at Rotherham United, Jackett spent four years at Portsmouth before a less successful eight-month period at Leyton Orient, where he was sacked in February 2022. He served as director of football at Gillingham from January 2023 to November 2024, when he resigned due to health reasons.
Tributes
Watford paid tribute, stating: "It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our former player and manager Kenny Jackett. A true club legend and one of our own, Watford-born Kenny was instrumental in some of our greatest successes as a player before going on to serve as coach and then manager. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time."
Wolves also honoured Jackett, saying: "Kenny led the club to its incredible record-breaking League One title and laid the foundations for the club as we know it today." They added: "Jackett will forever be loved and remembered by everyone associated with Wolves for the incredible job he did in helping turn the club around after dropping from the Premier League into League One."
