The experienced coach was approached by the English Football Association after Fabio Capello resigned from the role and accepted almost instantly, but fulfilled his commitments with the Baggies – helping them to their best-ever top-flight finish, 10th.
Since then, Hodgson took England through to the quarter-finals of Euro 2012 where they lost to Italy and two years later, England were embarrassed as they exited the World Cup at the group stages.
Here’s what other memorable sporting events happened on this day:
1904: The first football international outside Great Britain was played by Belgium and France at Uccle, near Brussels, and ended in a 3-3 draw.
1955: Stirling Moss and co-driver Dennis Jenkinson became the first British winners of the Mille Miglia in a Mercedes Benz.
1988: Ben Lexcen, designer of Australia II, the first non-American yacht to win the America’s Cup in 1983, died.
2000: The Norwegian owners of Wimbledon Football Club, prompted by player power, parted company with manager Egil Olsen after eight successive defeats – replacing him with assistant Terry Burton.
2002: West Brom chairman Paul Thompson resigned after a feud with promotion-winning manager Gary Megson.
2006: Graeme Dott won the snooker World Championship with an 18-14 victory over Peter Ebdon in the final.
2007: Liverpool reached their second Champions League final in three years with victory over Chelsea on penalties in the Anfield leg of their semi-final.
2008: Rangers won their UEFA Cup semi-final against Fiorentina 4-2 on penalties to set up a meeting with Zenit St Petersburg in the final in Manchester.
2011: Former boxer Sir Henry Cooper died aged 76.
2012: Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry retired from snooker.