Special synergies: Hoffenheim's double passes with Austria

Not only did Hoffenheim have an impressive season in the Bundesliga, TSG also had a significant impact on two World Cup participants. The German national team in particular is firmly in the hands of former TSG stars. Basically, the coaching team largely comes from Kraichgau. National coach Julian Nagelsmann started his professional career ten years ago as a 28-year-old novice at TSG Hoffenheim and kept the Bundesliga club, which was then threatened with relegation, in the league. At his side then and now: his analyst and closest confidant Benjamin Glück. Nagelsmann also guided his former Hoffenheim leading player Benjamin Hübner from TSG to the DFB after his predecessor and also former Hoffenheim professional, Sandro Wagner, said goodbye to the association. Shortly before the World Cup, Nagelsmann also brought his former Hoffenheim assistant coach and later TSG head coach, Alfred Schreuder, onto the DFB coaching staff. But athletic trainer Nicklas Dietrich was also previously active in this role in Kraichgau, and Hoffenheim's former press employee Ruth Pintner is also at the World Cup as the DFB's senior communications manager. So much for the officials. Oliver Baumann is by no means the only one with a Hoffenheim background in the national team squad. Four other players also once played for TSG: Nadiem Amiri (2012 - 2019) was already German A-Junior champion under Nagelsmann

and also made it into the professional team. Maximilian Beier (2018 - 2024) and Pascal Groß (2007 - 2011) were also trained in the TSG academy. Current VfB coach Sebastian Hoeneß brought Angelo Stiller (2021 - 2023) from little Bayern to Hoffenheim, and Stiller later followed Hoeneß to VfB. At the same time, TSG from Fürth also signed David Raum, now from Leipzig (2021/22). But Austria's World Cup team is also led by a Hoffenheim coaching legend. Under Ralf Rangnick, TSG managed to make it from the third division to the Bundesliga and became autumn champions straight away. But Rangnick is not the only one in Team Austria with a connection to TSG. His assistant coach Lars Kornetka (2007-2011) was also once employed as a video analyst at TSG and physiotherapist Simon Stadler was employed in the same role at TSG (2003 to 2010). There's even a special feature at the moment: Hoffenheim's chief physiotherapist Peter Geigle, who has been working for TSG since 2006, is currently on loan for the Austrians and is supporting the national team at the World Cup in the USA. As in the DFB team, there are also numerous cross-connections to Kraichgau in the ÖFB team squad. The current TSG professionals Alexander Prass and the newcomer Patrick Wimmer, who was recently brought in from Wolfsburg, are also in Rangnick's squad, as are some former Hoffenheim players. The young David Alaba (2011) once played as Le

FC Bayern's transfer to TSG, Stefan Posch (2015-2023), Florian Grillitsch (2017-2022 and 2023-2025) and Michael Gregoritsch (2011-2015) also played for Hoffenheim for a very long time. In addition, the currently injured Christoph Baumgartner wore the TSG jersey from 2017 to 2023. And vice versa, the current TSG Hoffenheim is firmly in the grip of an Austrian management team. In addition to head coach Christian Ilzer and his assistants Uwe Hölzl and Dominik Deutschl, managing director Andreas Schicker, sports director Paul Pajduch and Marco Angeler as head of performance all come from Austria and were previously active together at Austria's double winner Sturm Graz.