Régis Le Bris

Régis Le Bris (born 6 December 1975) is a French professional football manager and former player who is currently the head coach of Premier League club Sunderland.

Club career Le Bris grew up in Plonéour-Lanvern, a commune in the west of Brittany. He first began playing youth football for local side US Plonéour, before joining AS Ergué-Armel at the age of 12, and later Quimper.

In 1991, he joined the youth ranks of Rennes, where he would play primarily with the B team, but with whom he would also make his senior debut in 1994 and sign his first professional contract at the age of 21. Le Bris made a total of 31 Division 1 appearances for Rennes, across five seasons with the first team.

In April 1999, despite still having two years left on his contract at Rennes, Le Bris opted to join nearby Division 2 side Laval, signing a three-year deal with the club and joining up with previous teammates Ulrich Le Pen and Mickaël Buzaré. Le Bris struggled for consistent game time at Laval, only making a total of 52 league appearances across three seasons with the club, though it was there that he would meet future friend and colleague Franck Haise.

Le Bris played his last professional football with Belgian second division side KSK Ronse, retiring in 2003 to focus on youth coaching.

International career Le Bris played in multiple different France youth representative sides,

Managerial career

Rennes and Lorient Le Bris became a certified sports coach in 2004, and started his managerial career as a youth coach for Wasquehal, before joining the youth sector of Rennes in the same role.

In July 2012, after rejecting an offer to renew his contract with Rennes, on 27 June of the same year, he was appointed as the head coach of Lorient's first team, signing a three-year contract. In his first season at the club, he led the team to a tenth-place finish in Ligue 1; Following their relegation to the Ligue 2 at the end of the 2023–24 campaign, Le Bris officially left the club by mutual consent on 22 June 2024.

Sunderland On 22 June 2024, it was announced that Le Bris would be appointed as the head coach of EFL Championship club Sunderland on 1 July, signing a three-year contract in the process. Under Le Bris, the club started off strong, reaching an unbeaten record in the first month of the season and scoring ten goals while conceding only one; Le Bris was thus awarded the EFL Championship Manager of the Month for August. Le Bris ultimately guided Sunderland back to the Premier League after an eight year absence, winning the play-off final 2–1 against Sheffield United on 24 May 2025. In the 2025–26 season, Le Bris guided Sunderland to a seventh-place finish in the league, securing qualification for the 2026–27 UEFA Europa League.

Personal life Le Bris is the brother of fellow former footballer Benoît Le Bris, as well as the uncle of Théo Le Bris, whom he managed at Lorient. He graduated with a diplôme universitaire (DU) in the mental training of high-level athletes, from the same university in 2010.

Honours Sunderland EFL Championship play-offs: 2025

Individual EFL Championship Manager of the Month: August 2024,