Next Wigan Athletic Manager Odds: Three-Horse Race To Replace Axed Ryan Lowe
Wigan hope to make a "swift appointment" to replace Ryan Lowe, who was sacked following a 6-1 drubbing at Peterborough which saw them drop into the relegation zone.
Lowe was in charge of the Latics for 11 months, but paid the price for overseeing just one win in 10 League One outings.
Assistant head coach Glenn Whelan and Graham Barrow have been placed in caretaker charge while the club “take the necessary time to appoint a successor”.
Whelan was installed as the early favourite on one of the betting sites to take the reins on a permanent basis, but there are now three other candidates in the running to replace Lowe.
Next Wigan Manager Odds: Will Still Hot Favourite
Will Still didn't last long at Southampton, but he is the 5/4 favourite to get back on the managerial merry-go-round at Wigan.
Still oversaw just two victories in 13 Championship games while in charge at St Mary's and left the club at the start of November, five months into his reign.
The Belgian-born Englishman made an impact in Ligue 1 as manager of Reims and then Lens, so he deserves more time to show his capabilities.
Still's brother Ed was this week installed as Javi Gracia's replacement at Watford, but will he be joined by his sibling as the latest Football League manager?
Club Statement | Ryan Lowe#wafc
— Wigan Athletic (@LaticsOfficial) February 7, 2026
Could Caldwell Return?
Gary Caldwell spent the last four and a half years of his playing career at Wigan and was part of the squad that won the 2013 FA Cup for the first time in the club’s history.
His first managerial role came with the Latics towards the end of the 2014/15 season when Malky Mackay was sacked, but the Scot was unable to prevent the club from being relegated from the Championship.
However, Wigan returned to the second tier immediately under Caldwell as League One champions, but he was dismissed in October 2016 with the club in the relegation zone.
Spells at Chesterfield and Partick followed, but he is now in his fourth season with Exeter, who have ended up between 13th and 16th in League One under his stewardship and look set for a similar finish in the current campaign.
Caldwell was the leading candidate on Monday at 4/1 with one of the betting apps and although his odds have been cut to 7/4, he remains just behind Still.
Next Wigan Manager Odds:
Manager | Odds | Probability |
Will Still | 5/4 | 44.4% |
Gary Caldwell | 7/4 | 36.4% |
Ruaidhri Higgins | 2/1 | 33.3% |
Neil Critchley | 12/1 | 7.7% |
Steve Bruce | 14/1 | 6.7% |
Wilfried Nancy | 14/1 | 6.7% |
Glenn Whelan | 16/1 | 5.9% |
Dean Holden | 20/1 | 4.8% |
Darren Moore | 25/1 | 3.8% |
Alan Sheehan | 25/1 | 3.8% |
Leighton Baines | 25/1 | 3.8% |
Higgins A Surprising Candidate
Coleraine boss Ruaidhri Higgins is a left-field candidate for the Wigan job, having spent all of his playing and managerial career in Ireland or Northern Ireland.
Higgins guided Derry City to an FAI Cup final success in 2022 and a year later they won the President of Ireland's Cup for the first time in the club's history.
However, the former Coventry youth player left Derry in November 2024, but less than six months later he was appointed manager of ambitious NIFL Premiership club Coleraine, who are challenging Larne for the title this season.
Higgins is available at 2/1 for the Wigan job.
Highly-rated Coleraine boss Ruaidhrí Higgins is the latest name in the frame for the vacant manager’s job. Exeter boss Gary Caldwell remains the early front-runner for the role. #wafc #coleraine pic.twitter.com/xzZbHNCkQT
— Pete O'Rourke (@SportsPeteO) February 9, 2026
Critchley Heads Outsiders
Former Hearts boss Neil Critchley has entered the running to fill the vacancy at the Brick Community Stadium at 12/1.
In his first spell as Blackpool manager, Critchley guided the club into the Championship via the League One play-offs in 2020/21 in what was his first full season in charge.
However, he left Bloomfield Road in the summer of 2022 to join Steven Gerrard as assistant manager at Aston Villa, but left just four months later when the Liverpool legend was sacked.
Unsuccessful spells with QPR and Hearts, either side of a return to Blackpool, mean Critchley perhaps has something to prove.
Bruce In The Conversation
Steve Bruce is not averse to returning to a former club, having spent a second spell at Wigan between 2007-09.
Bruce may be regarded as an old-school manager, but he is highly experienced and could help steady the ship.
The former Newcastle, Sunderland and West Brom boss is 14/1 for the Wigan job, the same price as Wilfried Nancy, who had a woeful time in charge of Celtic this season.
In happier times, the Frenchman won the MLS Cup with Columbus Crew in 2023 and the Leagues Cup a year later.
Chance To Shine For Whelan
Whelan is in his second temporary spell in charge of Wigan, having stepped in when Shaun Maloney was sacked in early March last year.
The former Ireland midfielder took four points from the games against Mansfield and Cambridge, keeping clean sheets in both matches.
Whelan potentially has two home games against Reading and Luton, either side of an FA Cup trip to Premier League leaders Arsenal, to show off his capabilities and stake his claim to the job on a permanent basis, for which he is now 16/1.
Elsewhere, former Charlton boss Dean Holden, now assistant at Hull City, is 20/1.
Ex-Port Vale manager Darren Moore and former Swansea manager Alan Sheehan are available at 25/1.
Leighton Baines, who spent his first six seasons as a player at Wigan but is now assistant manager at his former club Everton, is also 25/1.
* Reminder: These are hypothetical odds provided by industry experts.
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