2026 World Cup: Germany Gets a New Look After Its Failure—Jürgen Klopp Takes the Helm

Jürgen Klopp is Germany’s new head coach: the decision, which had been in the works for several days, was officially announced by the DFB, the German Football Association, on Friday. Klopp takes over for Julian Nagelsmann, who decided to step down by mutual agreement with the federation’s leadership following the team’s failure at the 2026 World Cup.

“Jürgen Klopp is the new head coach of the German national team,” reads the DFB’s brief statement. “He will be assisted by assistant coaches Peter Krawietz, Pepijn Lijnders, and Sven Bender.” Krawietz and Lijnders worked alongside Klopp at Liverpool, while Bender—known for his playing career at Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen—is coming off a coaching stint at Unteraching in the Regionalliga Bayern (the fourth tier of German soccer).