Brendan Rodgers (born 26 January 1973) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player.

Rodgers began his career as a defender at Ballymena United, where he stayed until he was signed by Reading at the age of 18, although a genetic knee condition forced him to retire at age 20. He remained at Reading as a coach and then academy director, and continued to play non-league football at Newport IOW, Witney Town and Newbury Town for several years. After a period travelling around Spain to study coaching methods, he was invited by José Mourinho to join Chelsea as youth manager in 2004, later being promoted to reserve manager in 2006.

In 2008, he was appointed manager of Watford, where he remained until he accepted an offer to become manager of his former club Reading in 2009. He left the club by mutual consent after some disappointing results six months later. He returned to management with Swansea City in 2010, leading the club to promotion to the Premier League, the first Welsh team to do so, before guiding them to finish 11th the following season. On 1 June 2012, Rodgers became the new manager of Liverpool, whom he led to runners-up position in the league in the 2013–14 season before his dismissal in October 2015.

Rodgers became manager of Celtic in May 2016 and led them to an undefeated domestic season in his first year, and trebles in both of his first two seasons. He left Celtic for Leicester City in February 2019, winning the 2021 FA Cup in his second full season, before he left by mutual consent in April 2023. He returned to Celtic in June 2023 and won two further Scottish league titles in his first two seasons back at the club, before resigning in October 2025.

Rodgers was born in the seaside village of Carnlough in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. His father Malachy was a painter and decorator, while his mother Christina was a volunteer for the Irish charity Trócaire. Rodgers is the eldest of five boys. His younger brother Malachy became a well-known country-and-western singer locally, and is now pursuing a career in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. He grew up as a supporter of Sheffield Wednesday and Celtic.

Rodgers was brought up a Catholic. He attended St John's Catholic Primary School in Carnlough, and then moved on to St Patrick's College, Ballymena until the age of 16. His mother died in 2010 at the age of 53, and in September 2011 Rodgers was by his father's side when he died of cancer, aged 59.

As a teenager, Rodgers represented Northern Ireland at schoolboy level, notably playing against Brazil in 1988. He began his senior career as a defender for Ballymena United, his local team, in 1987. Three years later, at the age of 18, he was signed by Reading where he played in the reserves. His professional playing career was ended when he was 20, due to a genetic knee condition. Following this enforced retirement, Rodgers spent several years playing in non-league football for Newport (IOW), Witney Town and Newbury Town, while remaining as a youth coach at Reading. He found employment at John Lewis to support his young family.

Rodgers spent a large amount of time travelling around Spain studying different coaching methods, and was eventually invited by manager José Mourinho to leave his role of academy director at Reading and join the Chelsea Academy as their head youth coach in 2004 after a recommendation by Mourinho's assistant and future Premier League manager Steve Clarke. Rodgers was promoted to reserve team manager two years later, and was kept in that position by subsequent Chelsea managers Avram Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari.