VfL has to look for a new coach
Fix: Wolfsburg promotes Hecking – despite relegation
May 30, 2026 – 7:33 p.mReading time: 1 min.
With Lower Saxony, the experienced coach dramatically missed out on staying in the league. He will now remain with the club in a new role.
After the first Bundesliga relegation in the club’s history, VfL Wolfsburg promoted previous coach Dieter Hecking to sports director. The 61-year-old will receive a two-year contract and will be responsible for the men’s, women’s and youth teams from June 1st.
“Dieter Hecking knows the second league and its requirements. He has the right skills for sports management,” said Supervisory Board boss Sebastian Rudolph. “We are very pleased that Dieter Hecking will remain part of the VfL family. He represents team spirit and identification in Wolfsburg.”
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The previous coach, together with sports director Pirmin Schwegler, now has to manage a complete restart under considerable time pressure: VfL needs a new team by the first game of the season in the 2nd Bundesliga on August 7th – and a successor for Hecking. Alexander Blessin from FC St. Pauli is being discussed as a new coach.
The relegation, Hecking admits, “is still gnawing at me. It will be important to create a positive mood in the club as quickly as possible so that we can tackle the issue of the second division together with the necessary mixture of humility, courage and conviction.”
A promotion after relegation: In Hecking’s case, this only comes as a surprise at first glance. The actual preferred candidates Marcel Schäfer (RB Leipzig) and Fabian Wohlgemuth (VfB Stuttgart) were not available for the position of managing director.
