Jurgen Klopp was first approached by Red Bull more than two years ago and conducted secret meetings during his Liverpool reign, a company boss has revealed.
The German will begin his role as ‘Global Head of Soccer’ with Red Bull on January 1 after his new job was announced in October.
Klopp left Liverpool’s players and fans reeling in January when he announced he would leave, though club chiefs had known since November 2023.
His new role sees him 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 tantalised him all along.
‘Over the last 20 years, I have experienced, helped shape and negotiated many negotiations in football. I have to say that when he got the yes, it was the easiest,’ said Red Bull chief Oliver Mintzlaff, as per BILD.
‘Not because we offered him an unbelievable financial package, on the contrary. We spoke about the financial side for 20 seconds because he said he was up for the task.
Jurgen Klopp first had conversations about joining Red Bull more than two years ago, according to a company chief
The former Liverpool boss initially turned Red Bull away but was very eager to agree to a deal after he announced his departure
Oliver Mintzlaff says Klopp wasn’t concerned by the money and was just enthusiastic
‘I hope he doesn’t hear that now, because then he’ll think that he and his advisor negotiated poorly,’ Mintzlaff joked. ‘But no, financially it took 20 seconds. When the yes was there, it was one of the easiest negotiations I’ve conducted in 20 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 spoke to Jurgen about it. He said: “I think that’s great, I think that’s impressive.” Not just what’s happening in football, but also the sports Red Bull is involved in, how much is being done for young talent.
‘That always interested him and excited him. So we always kept in touch and I didn’t let up.
‘But at some point he told me that I was extending my stay in Liverpool and that was of course a disappointment for me because that little door was then closed.
‘When he announced his departure, we met at his place in Liverpool a few months later and I started again with my topic and told him a lot of things, where I think we could use him and that it would be an exciting task for him.
‘And then he said: “All right, let’s do it.” I had to slap 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 in a press conference 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 to many fans he is a hero.
Klopp was targeted with a threatening banner by Holstein Kiel fans after taking his new job
The German will begin his role as head of global soccer at Red Bull from January 1
Former Borussia Dortmund manager Klopp has defended his decision to join Red Bull, but fans of his old side as well as Mainz were incensed
‘Lost all respect for Klopp,’ one fan wrote on X after finding out the news. Another said: ‘You’re nobody in my book anymore. Every cop is a son of a b***h.’
In October, Mainz supporters released banners with messages such as ‘Have you forgotten everything we gave you?’ directed to their former manager when they played RB Leipzig.
Earlier this month, supporters of Holstein Kiel unfurled a banner which showed Klopp caught in crosshairs next to a gravestone.
Klopp was shown alongside Mintzlaff as well as football financiers Martin Kind and Dietmar Hopp with the words ‘The gravediggers of German football’.
German football is proud of its ownership model, which dictate that clubs must operate on a ’50+1′ rule, meaning members – essentially fans – own the majority of shares and can influence decisions such as ticket prices.
RB Leipzig were accused of exploited the system by having just 17 members with voting rights – most directly linked to Red Bull – and got around a law stating teams must not be named after sponsors by officially calling the club RasenBallsport Leipzig, which translates as LawnBallsport Leipzig.
They are, therefore, deeply unpopular among rival fans in Germany, and that is amplified by their relative success.
Klopp has defended his decision to join Red Bull, insisting it is impossible to keep everyone content.
‘I did not 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 am 57 and can still work a few more years, but I did not see myself on the sidelines for now. It was clear for me that I would do something – so then Red Bull came.’
