It’s one of the most confusing terms in football and in employment in general. What is gardening leave? Does it mean that a manager has been sacked, or is there any way back for them? Do they have to spend their time in the doldrums tending to their daisies and petunias? QPR head coach Marti Cifuentes was sent to spend time in his garden by the Hoops after it emerged – or, at least, was alleged – that he had met with decision-makers at West Brom, who were looking for a new manager in May 2025.
He’s not the only one. Many other managers at all levels of English football have been placed on gardening leave over the years, and the measure has even been implemented against their coaching staff. A handful of Thomas Tuchel’s coaches were sent on their way in his final days at Chelsea, while Newcastle’s former sporting director Dan Ashworth was also placed on leave ahead of his switch to Manchester United. So, what is gardening leave and what does it mean for a football club?
A Definition of Gardening Leave
As per the UK government’s definition of gardening leave, an employer ‘may ask you not to come into work, or to work at home or another location during your notice period.’ For the period of gardening leave, you’ll be paid your full amount as normal and be able to claim any other perks, such as holiday days, too.
Why would an employer place you on gardening leave? The answer, in short, is to get you out of the premises. They may fear that you’ll be a disruptive influence while serving your notice period, blowing the whistle on bad practices to your fellow staff members. By making you work from home, or any location other than the workplace, then can effectively ‘silence’ you by preventing direct contact.
Defensive Ploy
In a football context, placing a manager on gardening leave can be considered a defensive ploy. If the individual is attracting the interest of another club, they can be put on gardening leave and be made to either a) serve their notice period, without taking up another job, or b) serve the entire length of their contract on leave. The latter makes no sense because it prevents the club from appointing a replacement; they would only be allowed to temporarily hand the job to a member of the existing coaching staff.
By making a manager serve their notice period, it could be enough to ward off the advances of a suitor – as, perhaps, was the case with Cifuentes being courted by West Brom. The main issue with placing a head coach on gardening leave is that it tends to sever any personal relations they may have with a chairperson, director or owner – their relationship becomes untenable. So placing them on leave is likely the last resort, and only even considered when all other avenues have been exhausted.
Negotiating Tactic
Imagine a scenario in which a want-a-way manager is left in charge of team affairs, too. It wouldn’t make sense to have a head coach that longed for pastures new, particularly where the relationship between manager and board has broken down – that certainly won’t help the players’ performances out on the pitch.
Gardening leave can be a negotiating tactic, too. If a club really wants to sign a particular individual as their next manager, they will typically want them to take up their role immediately – and they can, as long as the two clubs agree on a compensation package. By placing a head coach on gardening leave, their current employer is saying to the individual’s new club: if you want him or her, you’d better pay up… if you do, we’re happy to end that period of leave early.
Football Managers Put on Gardening Leave
BREAKING: Dan Ashworth has been placed on gardening leave by Newcastle after he told the club he wanted to leave following an approach by Manchester United. pic.twitter.com/QK8JGqszQQ
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) February 18, 2024
Legally speaking, an employer CAN recall a member of staff from gardening leave – so, in a sense, it’s not automatically the end of a working relationship; although it’s highly doubtful that a manager will return to their club when placed on leave.
Palace’s Steve Bruce
Rewind back to 2001 and we recall the situation regarding Steve Bruce’s desired switch from Crystal Palace to Birmingham. Bruce wanted to link up with the Blues, but Palace were in the driving seat because a) their manager would have to serve a nine-month notice period, and b) had a gardening leave clause written into his contract.
Point A prevented Bruce from resigning and taking up the Birmingham job straight away, while Palace didn’t want him at the club on a day-to-day basis anymore, so the gardening leave clause was enacted. Birmingham finally got their man the best part of a month later, but not before paying Palace a handsome bounty to release Bruce from his contract prematurely.
Newcastle’s Dan Ashworth
The same sort of scenario played out when Alan Pardew agitated for a move to West Ham in 2003, while Dan Ashworth’s proposed switch from Newcastle to Manchester United was held up by all sorts of legal red tape. As sporting director at the Magpies, Ashworth was pretty to all sorts of confidential information; not only in their tactics and training activities, but also in terms of player data, transfer targets and the like. In joining Manchester United, he would be taking inside knowledge – including some intellectual property – with him to a rival.
When Ashworth told Newcastle that he wanted to leave in February 2024, he was placed on gardening leave – a period which, legally speaking, could have lasted for 18 months. He remained on leave until July 2024, when the two clubs finally agreed terms on a compensation package that suited both. Ironically, Ashworth was sacked by Manchester United in December 2024 – a dismissal that cost them an eye-watering £4.1 million.
Torquay’s Chris Hargreaves
Sometimes, internal affairs dictate a manager being placed on gardening leave – Torquay’s former boss Chris Hargreaves refused to take a pay cut in June 2015, and was effectively levered out as a result. But, for the most part, gardening leave is a tactic used by an aggrieved employer to ensure that their rivals don’t secure a competitive advantage, while squeezing them for as much compensation as possible to persuade them to end the period of leave early.
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