Jurgen Klopp has landed a new job "back to the sideline" after he released a video announcing the surprise move.
The Liverpool icon, who led the Reds to the Premier League and Champions League during a glittering era at Anfield, has been out of football management since leaving Merseyside at the end of the 2023/24 season, as he was replaced by Arne Slot who went on to win the club's record-equalling 20th league title. He has been serving as the global head of football at Red Bull since January, overseeing clubs such as RB Leipzig, Salzburg, and New York Red Bulls.
The 58-year-old also took up a position with the German Football League (DFL), as part of an expert group tasked with enhancing the quality of German football. Klopp shares the panel with esteemed football figures such as ex-Real Madrid ace Sami Khedira, Bayern Munich's Jochen Sauer and Eintracht Frankfurt's Markus Krosche.
Now he has released a video on Instagram outlining his next project, with the caption: "Grass underfoot, stadium atmosphere, so close! Back to the sidelines, I'm looking forward to it!"
In the clip, which shows him walking around an empty stadium, he says: "Many of you have always known better. But I truly couldn’t envision it for myself. Going back to the sideline? I don’t miss anything. This is what I always thought. But now it is tingling again. Grass underneath my feet. The heated atmosphere in the stadium. And I want to be really close again."
Klopp then addressed the camera as he shut down suggestions of a managerial return once more. He said: "Oh? No, not as a manager,” he clarified. “I am becoming a pundit for Magenta TV at the FIFA World Cup 2026 [in the United States, Canada and Mexico]."
Klopp was then shown video-calling German television host and journalist, Johannes B. Kerner. "Hi Johannes," he said. "I’m in! See you on June 11 in Mexico! Cool sentence. Except for Indiana Jones, probably nobody can say it."
The legendary Liverpool manager bid farewell to England 18 months ago, passing the managerial baton to Arne Slot in the summer of 2024. The German's nine-year tenure at Anfield earned him a place in British football folklore, as he transformed the then fallen giants and lifted both the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League title the following year - ending a 30-year wait.
In addition to these triumphs, Klopp saw the Merseysiders crowned champions of the world and also guided Liverpool to FA Cup glory once and two League Cup wins.
Jurgen Klopp will be working as a pundit at the 2026 World Cup for Magenta TV
Jurgen Klopp will be working as a pundit at the 2026 World Cup for Magenta TV (Image: kloppo/Instagram)
The former Liverpool gaffer previously said he had no plans to return to the dugout anytime soon. In an interview with The Athletic, Klopp said: "I was super happy with the way Liverpool performed. I watched some games. But it is not like, 'Oh, it's Saturday!'"
"I didn't know when games started. I was just out. I played sports. We enjoyed life, spent time with the grandkids, completely normal stuff, knowing I will work again. But knowing as well, that I don't want to work as a coach anymore."
When probed if he would never coach again, he replied: "That's what I think. But you don't know. I'm 58. If I started again at 65, everybody will say, 'You said you'll never do it again!' Er, sorry, I thought 100% (when I said it)! That is what I think now. I don't miss anything."
However, in an October episode of The Diary of a CEO podcast, the German tactician stated: "I said I will never coach a different team in England so that means, if [I did return], then it's Liverpool. So, yeah, theoretically it is possible."