Joachim "Jogi"Löw (German pronunciation:[ˈjoːaxɪmˈløːf];[1] born 3 February 1960) is a Germanfootball coach and former player. He was the manager of theGermany national team from 2006 until 2021. During his tenure as manager, he led Germany to victory at the2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil and the2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia. In March 2021, Löw announced that he would resign from his position after the delayedEuro 2020.[2]Of all head coaches of the Germany national football team, Löw has managed and won the most matches (124/198).[3]
In 1978, Löw started his playing career with2. Bundesliga clubSC Freiburg. He returned to the club twice (1982, 1985) and held the club's overall goal scoring record until 2020, whenNils Petersen surpassed him.[4] In 1980, Löw joinedVfB Stuttgart in theBundesliga, but he had difficulties establishing himself in the starting lineup and played only four matches.
In the1981–82 season, Löw played forEintracht Frankfurt (24 matches, five goals), but he returned to Freiburg the following year. In1982–83, he scored eight goals in 34 matches,1983–84 he scored 17 goals in 31 matches in the 2. Bundesliga. Afterwards, he returned to the Bundesliga withKarlsruher SC, but he only scored two goals in 24 matches. Later, he joined Freiburg again for four years, played 116 matches and scored 38 goals. Löw concluded his career inSwitzerland, where he played forFC Schaffhausen (1989–1992) andFC Winterthur (1992–1994).
Löw started his coaching career as a youth coach for FC Winterthur while he was still active as a player. In 1994–95, he served as player-coach ofFC Frauenfeld.
Löw became manager ofKarlsruher SC on 25 October 1999.[18] His first match was a 1–1 draw againstHannover 96 on 31 October 1999.[19] He was manager until 19 April 2000,[18] finishing with a record of one win, seven draws and ten losses.[18] His final match was a 3–1 loss to Hannover on 16 April 2000,[19] while his only win came in a 2–1 win againstFortuna Köln on 19 March 2000.[19] He was sacked, with the club in last place (18th).[20]Marco Pezzaiuoli replaced Löw for the remainder of the season and only had two wins in the remaining seven matches,[18] finished the season in last place (18th),[21] and were relegated.[20]
Löw returned to Turkey as manager ofAdanaspor from 20 December 2000 to 2 March 2001.[14] He did not win any matches during this time.[22] When he left Adanaspor, the club was in the relegation zone at 16th place.[23]
Löw became the manager of Austrian clubTirol Innsbruck on 10 October 2001[14] and led them to the2001–02 Austrian Bundesliga title.[24] He finished with a record of 11 wins, five draws and nine losses.[25] The same year, the club had to declare bankruptcy and was liquidated. Löw was once again unemployed. He was withAustria Wien from 1 July 2003 to 24 March 2004.[14] During the 2003–04 season, Wien were eliminated from theChampions League byMarseille in the third qualifying round and eliminated from theUEFA Cup byBorussia Dortmund in the first round.[26] They won the 2003Austrian Supercup againstFC Kärnten.[26] He left the club on 24 March 2004;[14] Austria Wien were in first place at the time of his departure.[27]
WhenJürgen Klinsmann succeededRudi Völler as the head coach of theGermany national team following a disappointingUEFA Euro 2004, he brought Löw into the German setup as assistant manager. Klinsmann and Löw had met years earlier at a coaching school and both shared a philosophy focused on attacking football. Under their reign, Klinsmann and Löw's German team reached the semi-final stage at the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup and2006 FIFA World Cup.
Germany lost 3–2 toBrazil in the semi-final of the 2005 Confederations Cup, but subsequently defeatedMexico 4–3 in the third place encounter. Klinsmann and Löw's new attacking philosophy saw Germany score the most goals (15 in 5 matches) of any team in the tournament.
Germany opened the 2006 World Cup on 9 June inMunich with a 4–2 victory againstCosta Rica. A last minute 1–0 win overPoland and a 3–0 win overEcuador followed. Germany defeatedSweden in theround of 16 with twoLukas Podolski goals, followed by agrueling battle withArgentina. In the penalty shootout after finishing extra time at 1–1, the coaching staff gaveJens Lehmann a prepared list of possible Argentinian penalty takers and their preferred way to shoot, which was reported to have helped ensure Germany's victory[citation needed]. In thesemi-final match withItaly, however, the hosts conceded two goals in the final two minutes of extra time. Germany, however, turned in a dominant performance againstPortugal in thethird place match, winning 3–1 with twoBastian Schweinsteiger goals.
Besides a focus on attacking football and youth development, Klinsmann's staff also introduced an alternative B-team:Team 2006, to experiment with new aspiring players suitable to play at the home World Cup. Also introduced were an enhanced fitness coaching staff, as well asOliver Bierhoff as "Business Manager" – this job revolves around public relations, general management and everything not directly related to coaching – and a mental coach, Dr. Hans-Dieter Hermann, who has the job of preparing the German players for stressful situations in major tournaments.
On 12 July 2006,[14] following Klinsmann's decision not to renew his contract, Löw was named as the new manager of Germany. Löw obtained a contract for two years and announced that he wanted to continue in the philosophy developed with Klinsmann to play with an offensive style. Löw was particularly concerned with the amount of time his players hold on to the ball before passing. During his tenure, he reduced this time significantly, increasing the pace of the German game. He declared that his aim was to winEuro 2008. His first game in charge, a friendly against Sweden inGelsenkirchen on 16 August 2006,[28] was a 3–0 success in whichMiroslav Klose scored twice andBernd Schneider scored the other.[29]
Löw had a successful start inqualifying for Euro 2008 with wins over theRepublic of Ireland[30] andSan Marino.[31] On 7 October 2006, Germany won 2–0 againstGeorgia in theOstseestadion inRostock,[32] which was the fourth consecutive success for Löw and his team,[32] the best start of a new head coach of the Germany national team ever. The team extended this record to five wins in the next match, the Euro 2008 qualifier againstSlovakia in Bratislava on 11 October, with a 4–1 victory.[33] The Slovaks' strike was the first goal conceded by Germany under Löw's reign.[33]
The next match saw the end of Löw's perfect record, with the qualifying match on 15 November inNicosia againstCyprus ending in a disappointing 1–1 draw.[34] 2007 started with a 3–1 win against Switzerland on 7 February and a 2–1 win against the Czech Republic on 24 March.[35] Löw's first loss as manager came in his eighth game on 28 March 2007, an experimental squad lost 0–1 againstDenmark.[36] He had givenRobert Enke andPatrick Helmes their debuts.[36] When qualification for Euro 2008 was ensured, Löw's record stood at 11 wins, 1 loss and 1 draw from 13 matches and a 41:6 goal difference. This includes the first win overEngland inLondon's newWembley Stadium.[37] Germany lost to the Czech Republic in qualifying on 17 October 2007.[38] This was the second loss for Löw.[38] Germany finished qualifying in second place.[39] In the final match of 2007, Germany andWales finished in a 0–0 draw.[35]
Germany started 2008 with 3–0 win againstAustria on 6 February and a 4–0 win against Switzerland on 26 March.[40] Then Germany andBelarus finished in a 2–2 draw.[40] Germany had a 2–0 lead at half–time.[41] In their final match before Euro 2008, Germany defeatedSerbia 2–1.[42] At Euro 2008, Germany defeated Poland 2–0 in their first game, with two goals from Lukas Podolski.[43] In their second game, Germany were beaten 2–1 byCroatia,[44] while in their final group game, against Austria, Löw was sent to the stands by the refereeManuel Mejuto González – along with his Austrian counterpartJosef Hickersberger – for arguing with the fourth official.[45] Following his dismissal, he was seen talking toChancellor of GermanyAngela Merkel about the incident. Nonetheless, Germany won the match 1–0 with a goal fromMichael Ballack to progress to the quarter-finals[45] as runners up because of their earlier loss to Croatia.[46]
Löw changed the 4–4–2 system after the group stages to a 4–2–3–1 system, and left strikerMario Gómez out of the starting lineup. Though he was forced to watch from the sidelines, his team defeated Portugal 3–2.[47] In the quarter-final, Löw was banned from giving any directions to his team even through telephone calls. Later Löw declared that he had put seven different scenarios with his assistantHansi Flick in order to contain Portugal.[48] Germany won 3–2 againstTurkey in the semi-finals.[49] Germany then lost 1–0 toSpain in thefinal on 29 June 2008.[50]
Further progress was evident inqualifying for South Africa as Germany booked their place at the2010 World Cup undefeated. In their penultimate match on 10 October 2009, Germany secured first place in theirqualifying group for the 2010 World Cup by beating second placedRussia inMoscow 1–0,[51] sendingGuus Hiddink's side intoplayoffs.
In the2010 World Cup, Löw introduced new young players and fielded the second youngest team of the tournament, Germany's youngest since 1934. Germany toppedGroup D and met England in the first round of the knockout stage, beating them 4–1 before defeating Argentina 4–0 in the quarter-finals.[52] Germany then lost the semi-final to Spain 1–0.[53] On 10 July 2010, they went on to win the third place play-off againstUruguay by 3–2 to collect the bronze medals and third place at the 2010 World Cup.[54]
Germanyqualified forEuro 2012 and topped theirgroup with ten wins out of ten matches. This includes a 4–0 win against Kazakhstan and a 6–2 win against Austria.[55] During the qualification campaign, Löw signed a new contract that would keep him with Germany until 2014.[56] Germany then proceeded to top their group in the tournament, the only team to win all three of their group matches as they defeated Portugal 1–0,[57] theNetherlands 2–1,[57] and Denmark 2–1.[57] In the quarter-finals, Germany beatGreece 4–2, but were eliminated in the semi-finals following a 2–1 loss to Italy.[58]
Germany started qualification with a 3–0 win against the Faroe Islands.[57] Germany won their first match in 2013 2–1 against France.[59] After qualifying they started their2014 World Cup group stage with a 4–0 victory over Portugal. In the second game, againstGhana, Germany came from behind to draw the match 2–2,[60] while in the third match, Germany beat theUnited States – led by former German coach Jürgen Klinsmann – 1–0, with the lone goal scored byThomas Müller. In the second round match againstAlgeria, Löw's tactics were called into question after playing a high defensive line allowing Algeria to break through on numerous occasions. Nonetheless, Germany won 2–1 after extra time, thereby setting up a quarter-final clash withFrance. Germany edged France 1–0 with a goal fromBorussia Dortmund centre-backMats Hummels in the 12th minute.
In thesemi-final, Germany defeated hosts Brazil 7–1 to reach the tournament's final; the result was Brazil's worst defeat inFIFA World Cup history. Löw led Germany to their fourth World Cup title win with aMario Götze goal in the 112th minute to get Die Mannschaft the victory in extra time against Argentina in thefinal.[61][62] The same year he won theFIFA World Coach Of The Year Award after receiving 36.23 % votes and finished ahead ofCarlo Ancelotti who got 22.06 % votes.[63]
Germany startedEuro 2016 qualifying with a 2–1 win againstScotland.[64] Then Germany lost to Poland, 2–0.[65] Germany had 28 shots in the match and the result put them in fourth place.[65] Germany tied the Republic of Ireland 1–1 on 14 October 2014;[66]John O'Shea had scored the equalizer for Ireland in the fourth minute of stoppage time.[66] In the following month, meanwhile, Germany defeatedGibraltar 4–0.[67] On 13 March 2015, Löw signed a contract extension until 2018.[68] On 29 March 2015, Germany defeated Georgia 2–0,[69] Germany remained in second place.[69] and on 10 June, in a friendly match, Germany lost 2–1 to the United States.[70] This was the first victory for the U.S. in Germany.[70] Germany defeated Gibraltar 7–0 on 13 June 2015[71] and Poland 3–1 on 4 September 2015.[72] Three days later, Germany again defeated Scotland,[73] but on 8 October 2015, Ireland would defeat Germany 1–0.[74] Germany finished off[75] qualifying with a 2–1 win against Georgia.[76]
In the lead up to the final tournament, Germany faced France,[75] England,[77] Italy[77] Slovakia,[77] andHungary.[77] France defeated Germany 2–0 on 13 November 2015,[78] England defeated Germany 3–2 on 26 March 2016[79] and three days later, Germany would defeat Italy 4–1,[80] marking the first time since 1995 that Germany had defeated Italy.[80] Slovakia defeated Germany 3–1 on 31 May 2016.[81] In their final match before the start of the tournament,[77] Germany defeated Hungary 2–0.[82]
In the tournament proper, Germany were grouped intoGroup C alongsideUkraine, Poland andNorthern Ireland.[77] Germany defeated Ukraine (2–0)[83] and Northern Ireland (1–0),[84] while it tied Poland (0–0).[85] Finishing level on seven points with Poland but with a superior goal differential, Germany qualified for the round of 16 as Group C winners.[84] At this stage they would defeat Slovakia 3–0 on 26 June 2016,[86] setting up a quarter-final match against Italy on 2 July.[87] After the match finished in a 1–1 draw, Germany advanced to the semi-finals after winning the shootout,[87] matching up with tournament hosts France.[88] France would defeat Germany 2–0, inflicting its first loss on Germany in a major tournament for the first time since 1958.[88] Despite losing, Löw thought that Germany were the "better team" in the match.[89]
Germany started their2017 FIFA Confederations Cup mission with a 3–2 victory overAustralia in their first group stage match.[91] In the next match, Germany ended with a 1–1 draw overChile.[92][93] Germany then won againstCameroon with a 3–1 victory in their last group stage match and sealed their place in the semi-final.[94] This victory meant the 100th Victory for Germany under his coaching.[95]
Germany facedMexico in the semi-final and defeated them with a 4–1 victory to make it to the final for the first time in the tournament.[96] On 2 July 2017, Löw led Germany to theirFIFA Confederations Cup title win for the first time after a 1–0 victory against Chile in thefinal at theKrestovsky Stadium inSaint Petersburg.[97]
After Euro 2016, Löw opted to stay on as Germany manager.[98] Germany were drawn intoGroup C alongside the Czech Republic, Northern Ireland,Norway,Azerbaijan and San Marino for2018 World Cup qualifying.[99] On 15 May 2018, he extended his contract with Germany until 2022.[100]
Germany lost their first group match 0–1 against Mexico.[101][102] Löw played a 4–2–3–1 formation but allowed right-backJoshua Kimmich to attack that flank, giving Mexico space on that side. Moreover, playing two defensive midfielders but having them to push forward in attack left the German backline vulnerable to the Mexican counter.[103] Germany went on to defeatSweden with a 2–1 victory.[104] Germany were eliminated in the first round of the World Cup for the first time since1938, and encountered its first ever group stage exit after losing 2–0 toSouth Korea.[105][106] Four of the last five world champions would exit in the group stage of the next World Cup (the other incidents are France in 2002, Italy in 2010, Spain in 2014).
Löw decided to stay on as national team coach[107][108] despite the group stage exit from the World Cup.[106] The nation's losses in 2018 continued; Germany were set to be relegated from the top tier of the inauguralUEFA Nations League, but stayed in League A after UEFA elected to change the number of teams in each tier. Later on, Germany finished second in Group A4 in the2020–21 UEFA Nations League following a 0–6 defeat to Spain in the final group match in November 2020. It was Germany's worst defeat since May 1931, when they lost 0–6 at home against Austria.[109]
On 9 March 2021, Löw announced that he would step down from his role as Germany manager followingEuro 2020.[110][111] On 29 June 2021, England beat Germany in the round of 16 of Euro 2020, thus eliminating Germany from the tournament. This defeat also marked the end of Löw's tenure as Germany's coach.[112] His tenure of nearly 15 years is the longest for an international coach in Europe.[113] He was replaced by his former assistant manager,Hansi Flick.[114]
Löw is Roman Catholic and was analtar boy in his early life.[115]
He has been married to Daniela Löw since 1986; they have no children. The couple met in 1978 and dated for eight years before they got married.[116]
Löw has lost hisdriver's licence twice, once in 2006 (for one month) and once in 2014 (for six months) because of excessive speed and using a mobile phone while driving.[117][118]
^Peter Martin (2004). Sport-Club Freiburg (ed.).Hundert Jahre 90 Minuten: Die Geschichte des SC Freiburg von 1904–2004. Freiburg.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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