Jurgen Klopp has reached an agreement in principle to succeed Julian Nagelsmann as the manager of the German national team.
The former Liverpool boss, 59, is set to sign a four-year deal running through the 2028 European Championship and 2030 World Cup after agreeing terms with the DFB, Germany’s football association.
Following his exit from Anfield at the end of the 2023-24 season, Klopp enjoyed a short break from football before joining Red Bull as their Global Head of Soccer in January 2025, taking on a strategy and advisory role behind the scenes.
But it appears Liverpool’s legendary former manager is now eager to return to the dugout after Germany’s disappointing World Cup campaign in the United States, Canada and Mexico, agreeing to succeed Nagelsmann who resigned after the team’s penalty shootout exit in the round of 32 against Paraguay.
A DFB spokesperson said on Saturday: ‘DFB President Bernd Neuendorf and DFB Vice President Hans-Joachim Watzke held their first in-depth talks with Jurgen Klopp yesterday in New York regarding his potential appointment as national team coach.
‘During the constructive exchange, an agreement was reached on the key points of a potential contract.
Jurgen Klopp has reached an agreement in principle to become Germany’s new head coach
Julian Nagelsmann stepped down as Germany boss after a disappointing World Cup campaign
‘Talks will continue next week. Both sides are confident that the negotiations – subject to an agreement with Klopp’s current employer, Red Bull – can ultimately be successfully concluded.
‘Any potential contract must be finalized in a joint meeting of the supervisory board and shareholders’ meeting of DFB GmbH & Co. KG.’
Klopp and the DFB will now meet with Red Bull to discuss the terms of his departure, with the ex-Reds boss having initially signed a five-year contract in 2025 with the energy drinks brands.
It was reported earlier this year that Klopp’s Red Bull deal included a unique exit clause, drawn up specifically so that he could break the contract early if Germany’s head coach position became available.
Pep Lijnders, Klopp’s former assistant coach at Liverpool who went on to team up with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City prior to his exit this summer, has reportedly agreed to join his ranks within the Germany set-up.
Given the team’s long and rich history, four-time World Cup winners Germany have suffered a disappointing lack of success over the last decade, having failed to push past the quarter-final stage in each of their last four major tournaments.
The 2020 and 2024 European Championship saw them crash out in the round of 16 and quarter-final respectively, while this summer’s World Cup round of 32 defeat was preceded by a disappointing group stage exit at Qatar’s tournament in 2022.
Following his exit from Anfield at the end of the 2023-24 season, Klopp enjoyed a short break from football before joining Red Bull as their Global Head of Soccer in January 2025
Speaking to German broadcaster Magenta after Nagelsmann’s resignation, Klopp confirmed that he and the DFB had been discussing the vacancy.
‘Yes, I can confirm the talks,’ he said. ‘Things moved pretty quickly. Julian stepped down. The DFB are looking for a successor. And they’re talking to me.
‘I need to talk to Oliver Mintzlaff (CEO of corporate projects and investments at Red Bull). He’s my employer. We’ve already texted things. I assume he’s not in the way. I was there for 19 months. It was an intense time. Ideally, there are only winners in the end. Red Bull must come out of the number clean.’
