Steve Borthwick

Steve Borthwick is the head coach of England, appointed in December 2022. Born in Carlisle in October 1979, he was a lock for Bath and Saracens and captained both, winning 57 England caps between 2001 and 2010 and leading the side 21 times. Even as a player he was known less for physical dominance than for forensic detail, particularly at the lineout.

The apprenticeship

That specialism took him straight into coaching. He was Japan’s forwards coach under Eddie Jones from 2012, a spell that included the 2015 World Cup win over South Africa in Brighton, then England’s forwards coach from 2015 to 2020 — central to the 2016 Grand Slam and the run to the 2019 World Cup final.

His first head coach role came at Leicester Tigers in 2020, with the club near the bottom of the Premiership. Two years later they were champions. It remains the clearest evidence of what he can do with a squad given time.

England

Borthwick took over from Jones weeks before the 2023 Six Nations and guided England to bronze at that year’s World Cup. Progress since has been uneven: a difficult 2026 Six Nations left England fifth with a single win — including a first ever defeat by Italy, though the RFU has publicly backed him through to the 2027 tournament.

Style

His England are built set-piece first — a driven lineout, a heavy kicking and territory game, and defensive structure ahead of attacking ambition — with a gradual, still-incomplete shift toward playing faster and wider. He has yet to win a Six Nations title, and the Leicester Premiership crown of 2022 remains the only major trophy of his head coaching career.