Kathleen Krüger appointed Hamburg sporting director, first woman to hold Bundesliga role | OneFootball

Hamburg have appointed Kathleen Krüger as sporting director on Tuesday, making her the first woman to hold the position in the Bundesliga.

The club said in a statement that she was delighted with the trust placed in her and called it a privilege to help shape Hamburg’s future, describing the team as one of the biggest names in German football.

Her appointment comes weeks after Marie-Louise Eta became the first woman to take a Bundesliga dugout following her promotion at Union Berlin.

A former Bayern Munich midfielder, Krüger, 40, ended her playing career at 24 and moved into the club’s structure as assistant to then sporting director Christian Nerlinger.

She went on to spend 17 years working behind the scenes at Bayern, rising in 2024 to principal expert for strategy and sporting development, and was at the time described as the most powerful woman in the Bundesliga.

Source: L'Équipe