“I leave the way clear for new directions,” the 54-year-old former international wrote in a statement released last night, in which he considers his term to be prematurely terminated.
“In the last four years I have not managed to bring joy back to the fans,” the text continues, where he admits that some of the decisions “that we adopt convinced” have not been the correct ones.
Bierhoff’s contract expired in 2024, meaning that he would have predictably continued in the position until the next European Championship, in which Germany will host.
The resignation of the director of the group of teams thus occurred four days after the elimination of Germany in the World Cup and, meanwhile, other possible decisions by the DFB are expected in the country.
Beyond what happened in Qatar, Bierhoff is associated with the last two “failures” of the German team; in the previous World Cup in Russia, to which she went as the defending champion, but fell in the group stage, and in the Euro Cup, in 2021, where she was also eliminated prematurely.
The former striker joined the national team in 2004, still with Jürgen Klinsmann as coach and after having played 70 official matches for the national team as an international footballer.
The president of the DFB, Bernd Neuendorf, announced before leaving Qatar, the convening of a summit meeting with the coach Hansi Flick and with Bierhoff, to analyze the elimination in the group stage.
“We will start an orderly process to handle the situation,” Neuendorf said, still from the Doha airport in a statement reported by German media.
Bierhoff had stated after the elimination in the group stage of Qatar 2022, which he shared with Spain, Japan and Costa Rica, his intention to continue in office, in addition to stating that the decision on his continuity is not his business.
In those statements at the time, the now outgoing director had defended the continuity of Flick, which has a contract until 2024.
Flick, a former Bayern Munich coach, was hired in 2021 after the two consecutive German shipwrecks, with the aim of refloating the team after the long era marked by Joachim Löw.
In Germany, it is seen that Bierhoff’s resignation will “save” or at least ease the pressure on Flick.
The popular newspaper “Bild” speculates this morning with the also former international Matthias Sammer as Bierhoff’s successor.