Borussia Dortmund fans have expressed anger after former coach Jurgen Klopp was appointed as head of football operations as Red Bull.
Red Bull – an energy drink company, which owns Dortmund’s Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig alongside teams in New York and Salzburg – made the announcement on Wednesday while also stating he will begin his new role in January.
Klopp was an absolute fan favourite and hero in Dortmund as he lifted two Bundesliga titles, a German Cup and was UEFA Champions League finalist in 2013, in his seven years at the club.
With the latest development, the Dortmund fanzine Schwatzgelb said that Klopp has destroyed his reputation and “torn it down with a bang”.
There was also a reference to Klopp’s self-label of ‘the normal one’, a response to Jose Mourinho’s famous declaration of being the ‘special one’ after his return to Chelsea.
“The normal one, unfortunately (is) normal on all levels. Normal like everyone else in this dirty business,” the magazine wrote.
“Jurgen Klopp’s decision to support Red Bull has ruined his life’s work, at least for a large proportion of fans in Dortmund and in Germany,” it said while adding he had given a “well-mannered middle finger” to Dortmund fans.
Klopp had retained a favoured reputation with the Dortmund faithful despite leaving for Liverpool in 2015, where he won several laurels, including the Champions League and Premier League, before deciding to resign due to low energy.
The 57-year-old was also given a big reception at a testimonial game in September at Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion in front of 81,365 fans.
Klopp is known for his ‘everyman’ appeal with willingness to speak out on social issues — and also in England, famously speaking on match time slots being decided by TV networks as well as wider issues of populism and Brexit.
The German was also openly critical of the European Super League in 2021.
Klopp’s decision to take up the job with Red Bull has infuriated Dortmund fans, who like many supporters in German football, have a dislike for RB Leipzig.
There is consensus among fans who are of the opinion Leipzig, founded in 2009, are not consistent with Germany’s 50+1 rule, which requires member control of clubs, while others have hit out at the multi-club ownership model used by Red Bull.
Klopp had previously been defensive of the Red Bull model while calling himself a football “traditionalist”.
He told DFL, in an interview that he “understood how RB Leipzig was criticised by football tradionalists – of which I am one.
“They don’t earn more money than Dortmund, or Bayern. They develop young players – the whole idea is a football idea and not a money idea.”
