“I knew I had opened the door a little bit for women,” said Sabrina Wittmann, who became the first woman to coach a men’s team in Germany’s third division when she was appointed head coach of Ingolstadt in 2024. “Honestly, I was scared to close it.”
This confession hints at the weight of responsibility this young woman must have felt as the national media flocked to town to report on this curiosity. “There were so many cameras and media,” she recalls. “That was something new in Ingolstadt.”
Internally, the decision to turn to Wittmann as the club’s new interim head coach that spring felt like a natural choice. She had already coached the U17 and U19 teams and was the third division club’s development director at the time.
Wittmann has steadily risen through the ranks (Credit: FC Ingolstadt)
After finishing the league season undefeated and also winning the Bayern Cup, Ingolstadt decided to appoint Wittmann as permanent head coach that summer. Almost two years later, she’s still there and just signed a new contract extension.
She feels this is a good opportunity to reflect on what she has learned. “I’m really lucky because there are people here who have never valued me as just a woman, which is probably not that common. And I’ve never had a problem with the players,” she says.
“When I was younger, I thought it was all about the football side, but as I’ve grown as a coach, I think it’s probably more about managing people than anything else. It’s people. They’re not just football players, they’re fathers, they have kids, they’re parents.”
Some of the questions are now well known. How is she perceived by her peers on the touchline? “8 out of 10 people are very nice to me.” What is the difference when coaching men and women? “Women are probably much more patient with video analysis.”
Wittmann on the training ground in Ingolstadt (Credit: FC Ingolstadt)
For Whitman, 34, there will always be a balance between recognizing the responsibility of her role as a women’s ambassador to the men’s game and simply wanting to be judged by the same standards as the coaches she shakes hands with every week.
“It’s okay that I’m the first woman and I’m really proud of that, but ultimately I want to be a good coach,” she says. “I’ve had negative things said to me on social media, people have yelled at me at the stadium. But I mean, it’s nothing. I’m not focused on that.”
Asked about her coaching influences, Wittmann cited Jurgen Klopp for his emotional leadership, Josep Guardiola for his attention to detail, and even said he was trying to blend Julian Nagelsmann with Thomas Tuchel. But she wants to find her own way.
“I love intense football, with or without the ball. Possession is important, but it’s very important to press high and get the ball as quickly as possible. You also have to be structured to defend the goal. But it’s really important to have your own style.”
Interestingly, her father’s words still stick with her. “He told me that a woman’s strength is something you shouldn’t lose, because men don’t necessarily love a woman’s strength, but they know it through their mothers and sisters. So I try to be natural, and it’s worked out for me.”
Furthermore, she added: “You don’t have to be extra hard or anything. Just be real. Just because you’re a woman doesn’t mean you have to be harder. If a woman tries to be a man, it’s probably unnatural. You know what I mean? So I’m probably softer than a man.”
“I’m probably softer than the men,” says Ingolstadt head coach Wittmann
It helps that she can back it up. Wittmann’s soccer journey began at the age of 14 when he was spotted by German legend Miroslav Klose on holiday and encouraged by his parents to help him pursue soccer. She began coaching as an exchange student in Kentucky.
“I fell in love with the job,” said Wittmann, who worked his way up from coaching Ingolstadt’s Under-10 team and received his UEFA professional license in January. “It’s actually been a life goal and a big dream. It means being able to train every team on the planet.”
Ingolstadt coach Wittmann announces contract extension
Whitman says she has a “strong personality” and is used to being the only woman in the room. “As a coach, I’ve grown up with only men, so I’m really used to that.” She makes the claim that it has to be “really good to be accepted,” and you believe her.
Despite her relatively young age, she also brings other experience to the role. Apprenticeship at Audi. “Learning to work in an organization helps you organize yourself.” She also studied law. “I never thought I would work in soccer.”
Ingolstadt coach Wittmann wants a high-pressure match
A workaholic, she believes her professional license has helped her develop herself. “No one talked to me about how to better manage myself.” But now she’s already thinking about her next career goal. “I hope to be promoted within the next two years.”
Ingolstadt were in the Bundesliga until 2017, and their rise to power under Ralph Hasenhüttl was a story in itself. “I was at the stadium, and it was a great time.” But it’s not about impersonation. “It’s not just copy and paste. We don’t want to be Ralph Hasenhüttl.”
After stabilizing the club in the middle of the third division, Ingolstadt is looking for a new path. “It’s about building something. Last season we lost 19 players, not in a sad sense. We developed players who went up to the second division and even the first division.”
Wittman retains his instincts as a youth coach. “The better the players are, the better the team is. That’s why I extended my contract because I think we did a good job in the last two years, even if we didn’t bounce back,” she said. we need to build. ”
Whitman hopes other policymakers will be open to appointing women as well.
How her own career develops from here will be of interest to people far beyond this Bavarian city, and she knows it. It’s an awkward question to ask her, but it needs to be asked. Ingolstadt was convinced, but where was the evidence that other clubs would trust her?
Despite all the talk about her breakthrough, the barriers she broke and the way Whitman paved the way, the feeling of waiting for her next appointment continues. She remains alone. “Ultimately, the decision is yours to make,” she admits.
“I’m really lucky to have Didi Beiersdorfer and Ivo Grlic who got me into this position two years ago. Out of the 36 decision-makers in the first and second leagues, it would probably be difficult to find the next decision-maker or two to make these decisions.”
Furthermore, she added: “There’s a difference between talking to me and telling me I’m doing a good job and making a decision. But that wasn’t the reason for the extension because I was scared of not being able to coach elsewhere. I believe it will happen.”
“There may come a day when I have to leave here. Hopefully, it’s because I can coach an even higher-ranked team. In five years, 10 years, whatever, I think things will be different, not just for me, but for all the women who want to be coaches.”
