England coach Roy Hodgson's four-year reign came to an abrupt end after their shock 2-1 defeat by tiny Iceland at the Euro 2016.
Hodgson, 68, wasted little time in announcing he was stepping down at the end of his contract when he read a prepared statement at the post-match news conference on Monday (Tuesday AEST).
Iceland looked the better team in just about every aspect of the game and fully deserved to extend their dream run on their first tournament appearance.
After falling behind to a fourth-minute Wayne Rooney penalty they levelled almost immediately through Ragnar Sigurdsson and struck again in the 18th with a shot by Kolbeinn Sigthorsson.
A ponderous England never looked remotely capable of finding a way back into the game and even at the end when they were reduced to launching long balls into the box, Iceland dealt with everything comfortably.
"We are out of the Euros so now is the time for someone else to oversee the progress of a hungry and extremely talented group of players," said the man who replaced Italian Fabio Capello.
"My contract was always going to be up after this tournament. I would have loved to have stayed on another two years, but now it is time for someone else to take over this group of players," he added.
The coaching staff of Gary Neville and Ray Lewington, who sat with Hodgson at the news conference, are also leaving after their last-16 exit from the tournament.
The much-travelled Hodgson was handed the post after a club career mostly served in England and Scandinavia and with a spell as Switzerland coach on his CV.
Hodgson had a good record in qualifiers, with England enjoying a perfect 10 wins in their section to reach Euro 2016, but he won only three of 11 games at major tournaments.
England reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2012, losing to Italy on penalties, before a dismal 2014 World Cup where they exited at the group stages without winning a game.
"It's been a fantastic journey, the last four years. I will look back on it with pride," Hodgson said.
England under-21 coach Gareth Southgate is the favourite to take over from Hodgson followed by Crystal Palace's Alan Pardew.
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