Jurgen Klopp was first approached by Red Bull more than two years ago and held secret meetings during his reign at Liverpool, a company boss has revealed.
The German will start his role as ‘Global Head of Soccer’ at Red Bull on January 1, after his new job was announced in October.
Klopp left Liverpool players and fans reeling in January when he announced he would be leaving, despite club chiefs having known this since November 2023.
In his new role, he is responsible for the international network of all football clubs under the Red Bull umbrella – including Leipzig, Salzburg and the New York Red Bulls. it was a task that had tantalized him all along.
‘Over the past twenty years I have witnessed, helped shape and negotiated many negotiations in football. I have to say that when he got the yes word, that was the easiest,” said Red Bull chief Oliver Mintzlaff. BIL.
‘Not because we offered him an incredible financial package, on the contrary. We talked about the financial side for twenty seconds because he said he was up for the task.
Jurgen Klopp first had discussions about a switch to Red Bull more than two years ago, according to a company executive
The former Liverpool boss initially dismissed Red Bull but was keen to agree a deal after announcing his departure
Oliver Mintzlaff says Klopp wasn’t worried about the money and was just enthusiastic
“I hope he doesn’t hear that now, because then he thinks he and his advisor negotiated poorly,” Mintzlaff joked. ‘But no, financially it took twenty seconds. When the yes came, it was one of the easiest negotiations I’ve had in twenty years.
‘It took a long time. It was a very, very long process. The first idea was more than two years ago, when I first talked about it with Jurgen. He said, “I think that’s great, I think that’s impressive.” Not only what is happening in football, but also the sports that Red Bull is involved in, how much is being done for young talent.
‘That always interested and excited him. So we always kept in touch and I didn’t give up.
‘But at one point he told me that I was extending my stay in Liverpool and that was of course a disappointment for me because that door closed.
‘When he announced his departure we met a few months later at his home in Liverpool and I took up my subject again and told him many things where I think we could use him and that it would be an exciting task for him are .
“And then he said, ‘Okay, let’s do it.’ I had to punch myself in the face. Then he agreed and I quickly drew up the contracts.”
Klopp will face questions for the first time at Red Bull on January 14.
His decision to join the energy drinks giant provoked a particularly vicious reaction in his native Germany, and at Borussia Dortmund, where he is a hero to many fans.
Klopp became the target of a threatening banner from Holstein Kiel fans after taking up his new job
The German will start his role as head of global football at Red Bull from January 1
Former Borussia Dortmund manager Klopp has defended his decision to join Red Bull, but both fans of his old side and Mainz were outraged
“I have lost all respect for Klopp,” one fan wrote on X after hearing the news. Another said: ‘You are no one in my book anymore. Every cop is a son of ab***h.”
In October, Mainz supporters released banners with messages such as “Have you forgotten everything we gave you?” addressed to their former manager when they played against RB Leipzig.
Earlier this month, Holstein Kiel supporters unfurled a banner showing Klopp sitting in a crosshair next to a gravestone.
Klopp was shown alongside Mintzlaff and football financiers Martin Kind and Dietmar Hopp with the words ‘The gravediggers of German football’.
German football prides itself on its ownership model, which requires clubs to operate under a ’50+1′ rule, meaning members – essentially fans – own the majority of shares and can influence decisions such as ticket prices.
RB Leipzig was accused of exploiting the system by having only 17 voting members – most of whom were directly linked to Red Bull – and circumvented a law stating that teams cannot be named after sponsors by officially rebranding the club as RasenBallsport Leipzig name, which translates as LawnBallsport Leipzig. .
They are therefore deeply unpopular among rival fans in Germany, compounded by their relative success.
Klopp has defended his decision to join Red Bull, insisting it is impossible to keep everyone happy.
“I didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes,” he told former Germany, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos’ podcast.
‘I love all my former clubs, but I don’t know what I could have done so that everyone is happy.
‘I’m 57 and can still work for a few more years, but I didn’t see myself on the sidelines for a while. It was clear to me that I would do something, so then Red Bull came along.’