In an extensive interview with kicker, Jürgen Klopp has spoken about his role at Red Bull and his thoughts on German development. 

Klopp on his job at Red Bull:

Earlier this year, the 58-year-old began a role as global head of soccer at Red Bull. This means he is in charge of all the clubs within the Red Bull multi-club model, from Leipzig in the Bundesliga to New York Red Bulls in the MLS. 

On his role, Klopp said:

“I’ve never been the type of person who comes somewhere and says on day one: “What you’ve been doing so far hasn’t been that great. We’re changing everything.” I’ve always tried to understand: What’s happening locally and for what reasons? And then, if there were good reasons to change something, to do it. What I’ve done on a small scale at my respective clubs so far, I’m now doing on a large scale. So, with several clubs, but of course not with the same daily influence. I can’t watch things from Japan, Brazil, the USA, or even Leipzig every day – and I don’t want to. I want to support the people in driving their respective clubs forward as successfully as possible. That’s a lot of fun in itself. Getting to know the local people is, of course, amazing. You can also travel to foreign countries to look at interesting buildings or other things. That’s all impressive, absolutely. But you only really connect with people when you have something to talk about. And what’s better than football? I’m aware of what some people in Germany think about my involvement with Red Bull. But excuse me: I simply enjoy this job immensely.”

Later, on joining Red Bull, Klopp added: 

“The fact that I would no longer work was never an issue for me; I never thought about it for a second. I don’t play golf, so I wouldn’t know what to do ( smiles ). And accordingly, things are the way they are now, exactly right. We’re trying to get things going that will eventually work out so that we can then look for something else. Not another job, another field. To come back to your previous question: Yes, I don’t lack energy. But I wouldn’t have the energy to take over a club right now either. To say now: Okay, let’s start from scratch like we did in 2015 and turn everything upside down? No, I wouldn’t have the strength for that.”

Back when the 58-year-old was announced for the new role, there was a wave of criticism due to his previous comments about Red Bull and the fact that he was meant to be the figurehead of traditional football. Since the move, Klopp has continued to defend his decision to join Red Bull. 

Klopp on development:

Klopp then went on to talk about development in Germany. The former head coach is a member of the DFL expert group who will help with the future of German football. Klopp has long been a proponent of an under-21 league for professional clubs, similar to England, where there is a Premier League 2. 

On the idea, Klopp said: 

“I’m absolutely convinced it would help us. My opinion, and I mean this seriously, is no more important than anyone else’s. But it should still be discussed – and with the right people. When the interview was published, voices from places like Gladbach and Dortmund immediately echoed the sentiment: Things are going well for us, we’re happy. But it’s not about a club or whether they’re happy. It’s about the overall development, and we’re not doing something right, because it’s not producing enough results.”

Adding: 

“By 17, 18, or 19 at the latest, we’ve decided who will be taken on or not. For the vast majority, biological growth isn’t even complete yet, and we’re no longer helping. So the question is: How can we ensure that girls and boys see the future and are given the time to develop so that they’re ready for what’s to come? With a U21 league, we’re giving them this time. And—incredibly important—we’re also developing a new coaching market. Whether all of this will happen or not isn’t up to me to decide, but I’m in constant discussions with the right people—Marc Lenz from the DFL and Andreas Rettig from the DFB. There’s definitely an openness there, but at some point, of course, the clubs have to get involved—all of them.”

Leipzig is one of the teams that have failed to develop any of their own players from their academy, with most of their young players being brought in from abroad. On this problem, Klopp said: 

“Of course, we have things to improve at RB Leipzig in this regard, and with the appointment of David Wagner as the new head of the academy, we’ve already begun. He was a youth coach at Hoffenheim, an amateur coach in Dortmund, and a head coach in various professional leagues—you can’t get more experience than that. But we alone can’t establish a new league. Things will still change, for example, through participation in international competitions. But this isn’t about a Leipzig solution, it’s about a football solution: The key to individual development is always the right training at the right time—and the right competition at the right time in the respective age group.”

In Germany, professional clubs are allowed to have second teams in the league seasons, with them being able to rise as high as the 3.Liga, with Stuttgart and Hoffenheim having second teams in the third division this season, while a Sebastian Hoeneß-led Bayern Munich II won the league back in 2019/20.

This is continuing to be a contentious issue in German football as it is restricting actual teams from benefiting from promotion to the third division. Some second teams are not even used for developing players, with several having players well over 25 in their teams. It is widely supported that second teams should not be allowed in the league pyramid, and the adoption of Klopp’s idea of an under-21 league would be able to fix this.