Hoffenheim name youngest ever Bundesliga head coach at 28

Published 10/27/2015, 10:45 AM EDT

BERLIN (Reuters) – Bundesliga club Hoffenheim have surprisingly appointed 28-year-old Julian Nagelsmann, who has yet to pass his senior coaching exams, as their manager from next season, which will make him the youngest ever Bundesliga head coach.

The club sacked Markus Gisdol on Monday, appointing 61-year-old Bundesliga veteran Huub Stevens as his successor until the end of the campaign, with the Dutchman tasked with keeping struggling Hoffenheim up.

“We know this is a courageous step, but we see in him (Nagelsmann) such a huge coaching talent that we want to give him a prospect,” Hoffenheim sports director Alexander Rosen told a news conference at Stevens’ presentation.

Article continues below this ad

He said Nagelsmann had been given a three-year deal.

Briefly an assistant coach during the 2012/13 campaign, Nagelsmann will remain with the Under-19 team until the end of the season as he continues studying for his senior coaching licence.

“I am looking forward to a very tempting task and I would like to thank everybody for the trust and the opportunity given to me,” Nagelsmann, who coached Hoffenheim’s junior team to the 2014 German title, said in a club statement.

Hoffenheim, backed by billionaire Dietmar Hopp, are in 17th place with one win and six points from their first 10 games of the season.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Ken Ferris)

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.