Jurgen Klopp has been officially unveiled as the next manager of the German national team.
The former Liverpool coach had been working as head of global soccer at Red Bull since October 2024, overseeing the organisation’s network of clubs in Germany, Austria, United States and Brazil.
But Klopp has decided the time is right for a return to full-time coaching after the resignation of Julian Nagelsmann following Germany's World Cup last-32 loss at the hands of Paraguay on penalties last month. That meant that since winning the tournament for a fourth time in 2014, Germany had suffered early exits at the 2018, 2022 and 2026 finals.
The 59-year-old quit as Liverpool manager in May 2024 saying he had “ran out of energy” after nine years on Merseyside that saw them win the Premier League title in 2020 – the club's first top-flight crown for 30 years – and the Uefa Champions League.
But Klopp stated this month that he felt “recharged” and ready for another job with the German Football Association (DFB) saying on July 11 that they reached an agreement on “essential key points” of a contract with the former Borussia Dortmund manager.
Klopp's reign will start with Germany's Uefa Nations League match away to the Netherlands on September 24, followed by a home game against Greece three days later.
“The national team can connect us Germans like hardly anything else. That's exactly what makes this task so special for me,” said Klopp, who has signed a deal until 2030 and is taking charge of an international team for the first time in his career.
“It’s a huge honour to be sitting here today. What’s been happening to me these last few days is like a film playing in my head. I already had some idea of how big the job of national team coach is.
“But when you’re associated with it, you feel the magnitude and the responsibility even more. Knowing where I come from, it was unimaginable for me that it would ever come to this. It's a very special day for me.”
Klopp's coaching team will consist of Peter Krawietz, Pep Lijnders and former Germany international Sven Bender. The DFB also announced the appointment of appointed former German World Cup-winning defender Per Mertesacker as managing director for sport.
“We've had very intense discussions. He was our ideal solution from the start,” DFB president Bernd Neuendorf said.
“We at the DFB were unanimous in saying he was the candidate we had to talk to. Our talks with Jurgen only strengthened our belief that he's the right man at the right time … That's why we pursued him relentlessly.”
In March, Klopp had been linked to the Real Madrid job but he dismissed those rumours insisting he had no immediate plans for a return to the dugout. “If Real Madrid had phoned, we would have heard about it by now. But that's all nonsense,” he said. “They haven't called even once, not once. My agent is there, you can ask him. They haven't called him either.”
During this summer's World Cup finals in North America, Klopp found himself the centre of controversy while worked as a pundit for German TV and streaming platform Magenta TV.
After questioning Nagelsmann's starting line-up before the 7-1 win over Curacao, Klopp would say “Fortunately, Julian Nagelsmann is still picking the team – for now.”
Those last two words were immediately seized upon and Klopp found himself the target of criticism, including from former German internationals Andreas Moller and Steffen Effenberg.
“It’s rather disrespectful. It’s definitely not on. Jurgen Klopp wouldn’t be amused if he was national coach either,” said Moller, while Effenburg was equally critical, saying: “You can make a comment like that over a beer at the bar but not in front of millions of viewers. That’s just wrong.”
Klopp would later apologise and shake hands with Nagelsmann saying he could have “punched himself in the face” for his comment.
“But it was already too late and I was on TV,” he said. “It just slipped out so casually and has absolutely no meaning. What I know now is that I’ll be 59 the day after tomorrow and I’m still an idiot. We’re completely on your side. Nothing will be done to disrupt the process.”
Klopp started his coaching career at Mainz, leading the club to a maiden promotion to the Bundesliga in 2004 before establishing them in the top flight.
He then established himself as one of European football's most in-demand managers at Borussia Dortmund, guiding them to successive Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012 – also winning the German Cup in 2012 – as well as reaching the 2012/13 Uefa Champions League final.
Klopp then joined Liverpool in October 2015 where he would win six major honours including a domestic cup double in 2021/22 in a season which would see them finish just one point behind Pep Guardiola's Manchester Cityafter a thrilling title battle.
