No return to the coaching bench
Ex-Bundesliga coach takes over a job in Japan
Updated on 01.10.2025 – 2:00 p.m.Reading time: 2 min.
Roger Schmidt is supposed to improve the Japanese league by sharing his knowledge with trainers and managers. It starts right away.
Roger Schmidt is initially dedicated to a new area of responsibility – but not as a trainer. Bayer Leverkusen’s former coach will work as a consultant for Japanese J.League in the coming months. As the league announced, the 58-year-old should bring in his specialist knowledge in the areas of football philosophy and training methodology.
As part of the project, Schmidt will lead seminars for trainers and sports directors and share his experiences with the clubs and the league. Cooperation is limited to nine months.
Schmidt told the “kicker” that he was convinced that “vision and motivation to change things”. He was under contract with Benfica Lisbon until the end of August 2024 before the Portuguese club released him after two years. Since then, his name has been mentioned repeatedly when Bundesliga clubs separated from their coaches – but there was no return to the sidelines.
Already when I switched to Benfica, he knew that he wanted to take a break after the time in Lisbon, said Schmidt. He wanted time for things outside of football and especially for his family. The fact that he currently does not train a club is “not a new decision”.
Schmidt left open whether he will return as a coach. “I have never officially announced that I will no longer be a coach, but I always had a clear attitude for me in this regard and did not think new every week.” He also does not want to set goals now, but remain open.
This month, Schmidt starts with a special program for trainers and sports directors. “We hope that through this project we will improve the global perspective of the trainers, sports directors and managers and take the J.League and the clubs a further step to get closer to the top of the world,” said league chairman Yoshiku Nonomura.