Pep favourite and 'soul of the team': HSV's Kathleen Krüger | OneFootball

According to consistent media reports, the decision has been made: Kathleen Krüger will become the new board member for sport at HSV!

This means the 40-year-old will succeed Stefan Kuntz, who left his post at the turn of the year. After that, the Rothosen deliberately left the position vacant for the time being and took their time with a careful replacement process. Together with the agency Pedersen & Partners – represented by headhunter Henrik Mook – the supervisory board initiated a multi-layered selection process.

On Tuesday, the committee voted by majority in favor of Krüger, who prevailed against some notable competition. In recent months, various big Bundesliga names such as Sebastian Kehl and Stefan Reuter had been linked with the role. According to the Hamburger Abendblatt, HSV even made inquiries about Markus Krösche (Eintracht Frankfurt) and Fabian Wohlgemuth (VfB Stuttgart). But the Bayern official impressed the supervisory board across the board and ultimately got the job.

Kathleen Krüger: A life dedicated to FC Bayern

But who is the woman who will soon take the helm at the Volkspark? Krüger, born in the Munich suburb of Eiching, was once an active professional footballer. Between 2004 and 2009, she played for FC Bayern. Krüger has had a close connection to the German record champions throughout her life. In the early 1990s, she regularly attended home matches with her brother and father.

At 18, she was drawn to FCB herself. She spent one year with the reserve team before being promoted to the first team in 2004, where she made a total of 33 competitive appearances through 2009. The former midfielder ended her playing career at just 24 due to injuries. In addition, the demands and the very limited financial rewards in women’s football at the time were out of proportion.

Photo: IMAGO

But Krüger remained loyal to the sport and began studying International Management. At the same time, she took on organizational duties around Munich’s women’s team. When she was offered the job of assistant to then sporting director Christian Nerlinger in 2009, she dropped out of university after just one semester. She continued in the role under Matthias Sammer, who was appointed to the board for sport in 2012 – even though there was almost a split.

According to a report by Sport Bild, Sammer questioned the importance of Krüger’s role when he took office and was even prepared to dismiss her. When coach Jupp Heynckes found out, he immediately went to club president Uli Hoeneß. “If Kathleen has to go, then I’ll go too,” he is said to have made clear.

Bayern stars praise Krüger to the skies

So Krüger stayed in Munich and was later appointed team manager. Sammer appears to have changed his mind completely in a very short time and made sure his employee moved closer to the team. “He pulled me out of the office,” Krüger once explained on FC Bayern’s official club podcast. From then on, she was responsible for all organizational matters surrounding the team.

In this role, the rising figure quickly built up an excellent standing and was given more and more freedom to make decisions over the years. She also did not shy away from confrontation: under coach Carlo Ancelotti, the rules at Säbener Straße were less strict. Assistant coach Giovanni Mauri even smoked on the training ground, prompting Krüger to give him a clear talking-to.

This balance of necessary strictness on the one hand and friendliness and empathy on the other made the official almost indispensable for the serial champions and earned her great respect within the team. So much so that she was reportedly the only person outside the squad who was even part of the team’s internal WhatsApp group.

“She’s the one who keeps the team together,” Thomas Müller once said. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said the team manager was doing an “outstanding job.” Rafinha went even further and called Krüger “the soul of the team.” She also built friendships with Serge Gnabry, Joshua Kimmich, and David Alaba. “There are players who simply come into the office 30 minutes before training, and then you also talk about private things,” Krüger said in that podcast episode. “It feels like you’re on the same wavelength.”

Photo: IMAGO

Krüger was also on the same wavelength with star coach Pep Guardiola. After leaving for Manchester City, the Spaniard even tried to lure his former colleague to the north of England. Assistant coach Domenec Torrent also said: “You will always be in my heart.”

But Krüger stayed in Munich, where she has a permanent contract because of her importance. Her influence was particularly strong under treble-winning coach Hansi Flick. In 2022, she was even awarded the Bavarian Order of Merit. “Kathleen Krüger impressively demonstrates that women have now become indispensable in supposedly male-dominated areas of society, making her a true role model,” Minister-President Markus Söder said in explaining the choice.

Rumors about role change: Did Krüger fall out with Sané?

It was only in 2024, after twelve years, that she left her post as team manager. There is no final certainty about the decisive reasons for this change in position. As reported by tz, among others, there was major criticism within the team and staff of Krüger’s leadership style. She was said to have a sometimes strict, distant manner, combined with a clear command tone.

Accordingly, some players were said to have had an especially “difficult time” with her. One frequently cited example: Leroy Sané had to make his own way to the airport after being late, because Krüger had deliberately left him out of the team bus trip – apparently to send a clear message.

Since the 2024/25 season, the former footballer has worked as Senior Leading Expert Sport Strategy & Development, heading a staff unit within the sports board division of FC Bayern München AG that is responsible for coordinating, evaluating, and optimizing all links and synergies in the sporting area. In this role, Krüger was no longer responsible for the team, but for broader club matters.

Among other things, she was involved in the new construction of the training center at Säbener Straße. According to Bild, Krüger also arranged school partnerships for the club’s youth players and supported campus director Jochen Sauer. She is also said to have had a good connection with head coach Vincent Kompany and even played a role in transfers.

Nur die Raute – All the news about HSV

Krüger is expected to lead HSV into the future

HSV’s supervisory board was so impressed by this multi-faceted résumé that they believe the candidate is capable of taking on a front-line role as well. Alongside finance expert Eric Huwer, Krüger will therefore form HSV’s executive board in the future and, in doing so, stand more in the public eye than ever before. Because: up to now, the Bavarian has been noticeably reserved with interviews. When Sport Bild wanted to ask Manuel Neuer about Krüger’s role a few years ago, the goalkeeper first sought permission on whether he was allowed to speak publicly about her.

But major tasks await at the Volkspark not only in terms of communication. In all likelihood, there will be another sporting overhaul in the summer. Six loan players could return to their parent clubs, and the contracts of Ransford Königsdörffer, William Mikelbrencis, and Daniel Heuer Fernandes (at least in the event of relegation) are also expiring. What may help: Krüger and HSV sporting director Claus Costa, who will continue to hold primary responsibility for shaping the squad, already know each other. Both completed the DFB’s management course together.

Photo: IMAGO

Exactly when the southern German will take up her position at HSV is still open. Naturally, an official announcement of the partnership is also still pending. But the rumor mill is saying loud and clear that from now on, a dyed-in-the-wool Munich native will be steering affairs in the Hanseatic city.

Incidentally, Krüger is not HSV’s first female board member. As the Bundesliga’s first woman in such a role, Katja Kraus served as board member for marketing between 2003 and 2011. After Dietmar Beiersdorfer’s departure, she even took over his position as board member for sport on an interim basis in 2009. That is the very role Krüger will now step into.

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