Roger Schmidt Returns to Red Bull as Global Football Chief
Red Bull has turned to a familiar face to steer its sprawling football empire. On Friday, the group confirmed that Roger Schmidt will take over as Head of Global Soccer from Jürgen Klopp, stepping into one of the most powerful strategic roles in the modern game.
Schmidt will start on 1 October and has signed a long-term contract, a clear signal that Red Bull views this as a long-haul appointment rather than a quick reset.
Back to the “Red Bull cosmos”
For Schmidt, this is not a leap into the unknown but a return to a universe he helped shape. Between 2012 and 2014, he turned RB Salzburg into a high-intensity machine, sweeping to an Austrian league and cup double in his second season and exporting the club’s pressing-heavy identity to a wider audience. That success earned him a move to the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen in 2014, where his aggressive, front-foot football again drew attention at the top level.
His reputation has since travelled across Europe. Schmidt went on to lead PSV Eindhoven from 2020 to 2022 and then Benfica from 2022 to 2024, adding further weight to his CV at two clubs where expectations and scrutiny never sleep.
Most recently, he stepped away from the touchline and into the boardroom. Since October 2025, Schmidt has been working in Japan’s J.League as Global Sports Director, a role he was contracted to until 2027. Red Bull’s offer has cut that stint short and pulled him back into its own orbit.
CEO Oliver Mintzlaff made it clear why the group has gone back to a trusted operator.
“We are very pleased to welcome Roger Schmidt back to Red Bull,” he said, highlighting Schmidt’s “many years of experience,” “outstanding football expertise” and, crucially, his “clear understanding of our philosophy.” Mintzlaff underlined the 59‑year‑old’s “outstanding reputation for developing young talents and successfully promoting them at the highest level” – a line that neatly sums up what Red Bull wants its global portfolio to be.
Filling Klopp’s considerable shoes
Schmidt steps into the vacancy created by Klopp’s move into international football. The former Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool manager recently took over as Germany head coach from Julian Nagelsmann, who resigned after a disappointing World Cup campaign.
Klopp had only started his Red Bull role as Head of Global Soccer at the beginning of 2025, on a contract running until the end of 2029. The expectation was that the DFB would have to pay compensation to prise him away. In the end, no fee changed hands, a twist that smoothed Germany’s succession plan and left Red Bull with a high-profile hole to fill.
Klopp’s new deal with the national team runs until after the 2030 World Cup, drawing a firm line under his brief spell in the corporate side of the club game and opening the door for Schmidt to step in.
A philosophy perfectly aligned
Schmidt’s coaching journey began far from the global spotlight, with early stints at Preußen Münster and SC Paderborn. Those years built the base for a career that has consistently revolved around two themes: intense, proactive football and the elevation of young players.
That dovetails almost perfectly with Red Bull’s self-image. From Salzburg to Leipzig and beyond, the group has built its brand on discovering, developing and then unleashing young talent on the biggest stages.
“I am very much looking forward to this new challenge and am proud to once again be part of the Red Bull family in future,” Schmidt said. He called Red Bull’s international club network “unique” and “ambitious,” praising its clear philosophy of nurturing young players while still competing at the highest level. “It is precisely this combination that makes this role particularly appealing to me,” he added.
Now the task changes. No longer just a man on the touchline, Schmidt will be responsible for the sporting direction of a global portfolio that stretches across continents and cultures but leans on one shared idea: youth, intensity and constant progression.
Klopp has gone to chase a World Cup. Schmidt returns to try to shape what the next generation of Red Bull football looks like.
