Bundesliga: Wolfsburg parts ways with coach Hasenhüttl

Bundesliga football club VfL Wolfsburg has parted ways with coach Ralph Hasenhüttl , effective immediately. The Austrian took over the club during a difficult period last season, sporting director Peter Christiansen said in a statement. He succeeded in stabilizing the team. "However, the results and developments in recent months have made us decide to react now," the Dane said.

U19 coach Daniel Bauer will take charge of the team for the remaining two games of the season, along with U19 assistant coach Julian Klamt and U16 head coach Tobias Holm. On Friday (8:30 p.m., DAZN), they face TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, and on May 17, Wolfsburg will play at Borussia Mönchengladbach.

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The Volkswagen club desperately wanted to return to international football, but failed to achieve this ambitious goal for the fourth consecutive season. After a losing streak of eight games with only two draws, those in charge were forced to act. Hasenhüttl, 57, had only moved to Wolfsburg on March 17, 2024. Despite a contract running until 2026, the Austrian's tenure at VfL Wolfsburg is shorter than that of his predecessor Niko Kovac, who now coaches Borussia Dortmund.

There was a 4-0 defeat at Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, after which Hasenhüttl said: "I'm assuming we'll go home today, work together for another two weeks, and then we'll see what happens in the summer." A week earlier, after the 1-0 home defeat to SC Freiburg, VfL officials had declared that they wanted to keep the coach at least until the end of the season. A summer break, however, was already considered certain. "I always find it a bit cheap to blame everything on the coach," said defender Kilian Fischer after the clear defeat in Dortmund. "He's not on the field. We players have to sort it out."

Hasenhüttl's rebuilding efforts were accompanied by a sudden change of mood. In March, his team fell into a serious sporting crisis. Since then, indications of a premature end to the season have been mounting. At his third Bundesliga stop after FC Ingolstadt and RB Leipzig, Hasenhüttl initially saved a completely unsettled Wolfsburg side from relegation in the spring of 2024. Starting in the summer, he built a new team, including several top signings in the Algerian Mohammed Amoura, the Greek Konstantinos Koulierakis, and the 19-year-old Bence Dardai, which appeared to be on the right track until mid-February.

However, several factors proved to be Hasenhüttl's downfall, not just the repeated failure to qualify for the European Cup. The club's record at home is particularly disappointing. The club failed to secure a single win against relegation candidates Holstein Kiel (2-2), VfL Bochum (1-1), FC St. Pauli (1-1), and 1. FC Heidenheim (0-1) this spring.

Hasenhüttl relied on quick, counter-attacking football. He lacked a game plan when in possession. This took its toll in numerous games – and also displeased the new sporting director, Christiansen. The Dane hadn't hired the coach. That was his predecessor, Marcel Schäfer. And he had to leave shortly after Hasenhüttl's arrival in Wolfsburg. Since qualifying for the Champions League in 2021, the team hasn't had a break in terms of sporting performance. Christiansen is already the third sporting director since then. And with Hasenhüttl, the fourth coach to fail since Oliver Glasner's departure. He was the tenth head coach in just ten years.