Girl power – First female coach in Bundesliga history

It has finally happened—since late last night, we have the first female head coach in Europe’s “top five leagues.” It is Marie-Louise Eta (34), who will lead Union Berlin until the end of the season, with the main goal of securing survival in the Bundesliga. Union are not as threatened as VfL Wolfsburg, FC St. Pauli, 1. FC Köln or Werder Bremen, but the club’s management still decided to part ways with Steffen Baumgart and his staff after a 3–1 defeat to 1. FC Heidenheim. Shortly before midnight, the club announced they were thanking the experienced coach for his work, and that Eta—until now the U19 coach—would take over.

A former Germany international and a world champion in 2010, Eta will make her debut as head coach next weekend against Wolfsburg. Interestingly, she has already led the team once as a caretaker—back in 2024, when Nenad Bjelica was suspended. Union won that match against SV Darmstadt 98 1–0. A year earlier, she had already made history by becoming the first woman to serve as an assistant coach in both the Bundesliga and the UEFA Champions League.

“I’m thrilled that the club has given me this opportunity and entrusted me with this task. Our greatest strength at Union has always been—and will remain—our ability to rise to the occasion and deliver results when it matters most. I believe that will be the case again,” Eta said.

Sporting director Horst Heldt explained that the club did not want to leave anything to chance after picking up just one point in the last three matches:

“We’ve had an absolutely disappointing second half of the season. We won’t let the table mislead us. Our situation is insecure, and we had to react in time. We want to secure survival as soon as possible. Two wins in the last 14 matches did not suggest things would improve.”

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Marie-Louise Eta was born in Dresden and built a successful playing career with clubs like 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam, Hamburger SV, and Werder Bremen. With Turbine, she won the German championship three times and lifted the Women’s Champions League in 2010. She began her coaching career in 2019, working with youth teams in the German national setup, and has been at Union since 2023.

BUNDESLIGA ROUND 29

Friday

Augsburg - Hoffenheim 2-2 (2-2)

/Claude-Maurice 11, Gregoritsch 14 - Hranac 35, Toure 42/

Saturday

Borussia Dortmund - Bayer Leverkusen 0-1 (0-1)

/Andrich 42/

Heidenheim - Union Berlin 2-0 (2-0)

/Honsak 9,36/

RB Leipzig - M'gladbach 1-0 (0-0)

/Diomande 80/

Wolfsburg - Eintracht Frankfurt 1-2 (0-2)

/Pejcinovic 90+7 - Hojlund 21, Kalimuendo 32/

St. Pauli - Bayern Munich 0-4 (0-3)

/Musiala 9, Goretzka 53, Olise 54, Jackson 65/

Sunday

16.30: (2.30) Koln (3.70) Werder (3.10)

18.30: (1.43) Stuttgart (4.60) Hamburger (7.25)

20.30: (2.30) Mainz (3.40) Freiburg (3.10)

***odds are subject to change***