Patrick De Wilde (born 19 April 1964) is a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

Career

In 2007, De Wilde was appointed assistant manager of Ukrainian side Metalurh (Donetsk) after managing

Eendracht Aalst SC Eendracht Aalst is a Belgian football club based in Aalst, East Flanders. The club currently play in Belgian Division 2 where they are the defending champions in their region. History During World War I, citizens from Aalst played footbal ...

in the Belgian lower leagues. In 2008, he was appointed technical director of a Belgian field hockey club after working as youth coach of the

Aspire Academy Aspire Academy () is a sports academy based in the Aspire Zone in Qatar, founded in 2004 with the goal to scout and help develop Qatari athletes, whilst also providing them with secondary school education. History Aspire Academy was establis ...

in Qatar. In 2010, De Wilde was appointed manager of Chinese third division outfit Tianjin Tianhai after working as assistant manager o

Beveren Beveren () is a former municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders which comprises the towns of Beveren, Doel, Haasdonk, Kallo, Kieldrecht, Melsele, Verrebroek and Vrasene. The port of the Waasland (Dutch: ''Waaslandhaven'') ...

in the Belgian top flight, where he underwent brain tumor removal surgery and helped them achieve promotion to the Chinese second division. In 2011, he was appointed youth coach of Red Bull Salzburg, one of Austria's most successful clubs. In 2012, De Wilde was appointed manager of Liefering in the Austrian lower leagues, before working as a scout of Red Bull Salzburg. In 2016, he was appointed manager Saudi Arabian side Khaleej after managing

KV Kortrijk Koninklijke Voetbalclub Kortrijk (often simply called KV Kortrijk or KVK) is a Belgian professional football club based in Kortrijk, West Flanders. They play in the Belgian First Division, and they achieved their best ranking ever during the 20 ...

in the Belgium. In 2017, he was appointed manager of Chinese third division club

Hunan Billows Hunan Billows Football Club () is a Chinese professional football club based in Changsha, Hunan. Historically, Hunan Billows has played its home matches at various grounds across their home province, and last played at the Loudi Sports Center in ...

after working as assistant manager of

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. In 2018, De Wilde was appointed manager of ESS in Tunisia after working as assistant manager of

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. In 2019, he was appointed technical director of

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

after working as assistant manager of Iranian team

Tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a Trailer (vehicle), trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or constructio ...

. In 2025, Belgian tactician De Wilde was appointed as the Head Coach of the Nepal Women’s National Football Team, a landmark decision by the

ANFA Anfa (Berber language: ''Anfa'' or ''Anaffa'', ⴰⵏⴼⴰ; ; ; ) was the ancient toponym for Casablanca during the classical period. The city was founded by Berbers around the 10th century BC, with the Romans under Augustus later establishing t ...

aimed at ushering in a new chapter of growth and ambition for women’s football in the country. Renowned for his European coaching pedigree and a philosophy centered on discipline, tactical precision, and player development, De Wilde’s early tenure focused on identifying emerging talent, fostering a competitive culture, and introducing a possession-based style of play that emphasized strategic build-up and resilience. His appointment sparked optimism across the nation, with fans and players alike seeing in him a visionary mentor capable of elevating Nepal’s international standing while laying the foundation for a sustainable footballing future built on empowerment, performance, and national pride.

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