His world tour goes on: ex-HSV coach takes job in Sudan! | OneFootball

Josef Zinnbauer’s coaching career is taking him to the next extraordinary destination. The former HSV coach has signed a contract with Sudanese record champions al-Hilal until 2028.

For Zinnbauer, it is already the seventh stop since his departure from Hamburg in 2015. In a statement, al-Hilal welcomed the German with great expectations. “A new chapter begins. A new vision. A new challenge,” the club wrote on social media. The club’s officials also emphasized their confidence in Zinnbauer’s “experience, ambition and leadership qualities” and declared: “The journey begins now. Let’s make history.”

It has been around 12 years since Zinnbauer was regarded as one of HSV’s great coaching hopes. At the start of the 2014/15 season, he initially took over the U23 side and caused a stir with eight consecutive wins in the Regionalliga Nord. The Rothosen reacted to the sporting crisis of their senior team and promoted the coach to the head coaching position on September 17, 2014, as successor to Mirko Slomka.

However, the initial upturn did not last long. After 24 competitive matches and an average of 1.0 points per game, Zinnbauer was relieved of his duties in March 2015. He briefly returned to the second team once more before his international coaching career began.

Photo: IMAGO

Former HSV coach Zinnbauer takes over at serial champions

In recent years, that journey has taken him to FC St. Gallen in Switzerland, the Orlando Pirates in South Africa, Lokomotiv Moscow in Russia, Raja Casablanca in Morocco, Al-Wehda in Saudi Arabia, and most recently JS Kabylie in Algeria, among others.

Now the next challenge awaits with al-Hilal. With 31 league titles, the club is one of Sudan’s most successful teams. In 2025, al-Hilal even made international headlines when, due to the civil war, the club played its home matches in Nouakchott, Mauritania, and won not only the Sudanese title there but also the championship in Mauritania. With Zinnbauer on the touchline, the next successful chapter is now set to follow.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.