Christian Streich has announced that he is going to leave SC Freiburg this summer after 12 years in ... [+]
Legendary Freiburg head coach Christian Streich will leave his club at the end of the season. After much speculation, Streich announced his decision on Monday. The 58-year-old has been the club’s head coach since 2011 but has been active at SC Freiburg in other roles dating back all the way to 1995.
“I want to announce with a very, very heavy heart that I will no longer continue as the head coach of SC Freiburg,” Streich said in a video published by the club. “After 29 years, the time has come to allow for new energy from different people and opportunities. Freiburg is my life. I am thankful for all the support I have always received. Freiburg is a big club, and it was a wonderful time. But it is time to say goodbye.”
Under Streich, Freiburg has indeed become a big club in German football. Overall, Streich has overseen 383 Bundesliga games, 34 2. Bundesliga games, 26 Europa League games and 38 games in the DFB Pokal.
During his time in charge of the club, Streich transformed Freiburg from a team fighting relegation to a team regularly competing for a top-six spot in the Bundesliga. Streich not only regularly qualified Freiburg for Europe, but the club also steadily improved in European competitions.
Freiburg not only reached the final of the DFB Pokal two years ago but also managed back-to-back qualifications for the round of 16 of the Europa League. Both times, the club was eliminated by clubs with significantly more financial resources. Last year, Juventus stopped Freiburg and this season it was West Ham.
Indeed, Streich’s ability to achieve the best possible results with a limited budget while also growing the club’s stature in Germany and Europe has been his biggest achievement. Under the 58-year-old’s guidance, Freiburg collected 1.46 points per game, and after being promoted from the 2. Bundesliga in 2016, finished in the top half of the table in five out of eight possible seasons.
Christian Streich guided Freiburg from the 2. Bundesliga to the status of a top Bundesliga club. ... [+]
The results are one aspect. But as a former youth coach, Streich has also continuously integrated top talent at the club. The latest example is highly talented goalkeeper Noah Atubolu. Streich kept the keeper between the posts despite Atubolu’s mistakes at the start of the season.
That, too, is part of the Streich system. To walk a path with all its consequences, not to gain short-term success but long-term gains. And SC Freiburg has benefitted from Streich’s steadfastness.
That isn’t just the case on the pitch. Off the pitch, too, the club took a significant step forward under Streich. In 2021, the club moved from the Dreisamstadion to the Europa Park Stadion. The state-of-the-art facility seats 34,700 spectators and has significantly increased the club’s financial abilities.
With all that in mind, Streich’s departure from the club seems fitting. Under his guidance, Freiburg has become a strong Bundesliga club both on and off the pitch. “He is an incredible coach and an incredible person who stands for more than just football,” Freiburg captain Christian Günter said. “Without a doubt, he has been the face of an era.”
The question is, what will come next? The transition from one long-term coach to another will undoubtedly be challenging. But Freiburg has navigated this before when Volker Finke left the club after being in charge from 1991 to 2007.
Indeed, the fact that Freiburg now had two coaches in charge long-term speaks for the club. And even though whoever succeeds Streich will have big shoes to fill, the sense is that the decision-makers at SC Freiburg will give whoever comes next the time to get it right.
Manuel Veth is the host of the Bundesliga Gegenpressing Podcast and the Area Manager USA at Transfermarkt. He has also been published in the Guardian, Newsweek, Howler, Pro Soccer USA, and several other outlets. Follow him on Twitter: @ManuelVeth and on Threads: @manuveth
