It’s been an open secret for the better part of a month now that Jürgen Klopp would be Germany’s next head coach, to the point we had rather begun to lose track of the times various outlets had claimed the deal was done and his announcement was imminent.
Today, though, it’s officially official, with the DFB (German Football Association) unveiling Klopp as the new trainer of the national team on a four year contract that will see him manage at Euro 2028 and then the 2030 World Cup. He will be joined
at the job by long-time Liverpool assistants Peter Krawietz and Pepijn Lijnders.
“The national team can unite us Germans like almost nothing else,” Klopp said on his unveiling. “That’s precisely what makes this task so special for me. I’m looking forward to this special task in German football, which we will approach together with humility and patience.
“The goal is developing a team that fights for each other, that enjoys football, and behind which the people of our country can rally with complete conviction.”
For Klopp, involved in football as something of a figurehead in the Red Bull network over the past two years following stepping down at Liverpool, there had been speculation as to whether he might one day return to club football or if it was a case of the national team or nothing at this stage.
The 59-year-old says it was the latter—the national team or nothing. And now that he’s Germany’s head coach and expected to be in charge through at least 2030, he says it’s his final step and that he can’t envisage moving back to club football when his time with Germany is done.
“Jurgen Klopp is not going to have any ‘career’ after the national team,” he added. “This is the pinnacle, the absolute high point of my footballing career as coach, and I will give everything I’ve got.”
