The FAT officially announced Nuengrutai’s appointment on Tuesday (Sept 9), reports the Bangkok Post.
She will take over the reins of the Chaba Kaew with immediate effect and has been handed the task of guiding the team to the gold medal at the 2025 SEA Games, which Thailand will host at the end of this year.
The Chaba Kaew last won the SEA Games gold medal back in the 2013 SEA Games in Myanmar with Nuengrutai acting as their coach.
The FAT technical committee has ratified Nuengrutai’s return as the Chaba Kaew coach, hoping she will deliver the country’s first SEA Games women’s football gold in 12 years.
The 53-year-old Nuengrutai is the first and only Thai woman to hold the AFC ‘Pro’ Licence.
As head coach, Nuengrutai created history by helping the Thai women’s team qualify for two FIFA Women’s World Cup finals in a row - 2015 in Canada and 2019 in France - when the present FAT president Nualphan Lamsam was the Chaba Kaew team manager.
Nuengrutai recently helped the Thai national U20 team win the Asean U20 Women’s Championship crown in Vietnam this year.
She also has experience with men’s football, serving as an assistant coach of the national senior team when Mano Polking was the War Elephants’ head coach. Nuengrutai will now be working as the head coach of both the Thai women’s senior team and the women’s U20 side.
The Chaba Kaew will host Bangladesh for a FIFA Day friendly in October this year.