Niko Kovac Learns of Friend’s Death on Live TV: Controversy

Controversy has erupted in Germany and on social media over what happened at the end of the match between Stuttgart and Borussia Dortmund, which the Black and Yellows won 1-0 on a goal by Beier. During the traditional post-match interview, Dortmund coach Niko Kovac was informed live on TV by a Sky reporter of the death of his dear former colleague and friend, Peter Hermann, at the age of 74.

Hermann, who had been suffering from ALS for some time, served as Niko Kovac’s assistant coach at Bayern Munich during the 2018–2019 season. In recent years, he had worked at Borussia Dortmund as an assistant to Edin Terzic, before retiring at the end of 2022 for health reasons.

Kovac learned of the news right in the middle of the interview and was deeply moved: “It’s very difficult; I’m breathless. First of all, I offer my condolences to the family. I am deeply saddened because a wonderful person has left us. I had tried to reach out to him a few months ago, but it was no longer possible—his daughter had replied to me. The disease had reached such an advanced stage that there was no cure.”

The two had known each other long before their professional relationship began, when Kovac was a player at Bayer Leverkusen: “He was a man of incredible expertise—it gives me chills.”

Many fans on social media have harshly criticized journalists for the abrupt manner in which they informed Kovac of Hermann’s death during a live TV broadcast. The Sky reporter himself apologized at the end of the segment. The coach, deeply shaken, decided to cancel his other interviews and the traditional post-match press conference.