Jurgen Klopp reveals why he may never return to football management as former Liverpool boss makes not 'normal' claim

Klopp stepped down as Liverpool manager at the end of the 2024–25 season, closing a nine-year chapter filled with success. Since his departure, he’s taken up a role as Red Bull's Head of Global Soccer and even starred in commercials, but in a new interview with Welt, he suggested that his time as a coach could be definitively over, citing the personal cost of management.

Despite approaches from clubs like Bayern Munich and encouragement from high-profile peers, Klopp seems content with life outside the dugout. While managers like Roy Hodgson and Jose Mourinho view coaching as a lifelong calling, Klopp indicated that his passion never turned into addiction. The lifestyle, he claims, stripped him of the balance and freedom that he now cherishes.

Speaking to German outlet Welt, Klopp said: “I was in a tunnel, but never with myself. Now I pay more attention to myself. As silly as it sounds, I stopped doing what I always wanted to do. But it took me too far away from normal life – and ultimately, I no longer had a normal life. Whatever normal life is: my car knew three ways – to the stadium, to the training ground, and home.

"Frustratingly, while I had many visitors in Liverpool, I hardly had time for them. In the last four months, I’ve been to two weddings – before that, none in 23 years.”

"But I don’t want that [management] anymore. I have a job now that fulfills me and is also intense. I don’t sleep in the morning and I don’t go to bed later at night, but I can organise my work much better. My wife, for example, is really happy with it because we can plan things much better that we couldn't before.”

"Of course I enjoyed it too. Some days I couldn’t believe my luck. Just look where I came from – and then I made it to Liverpool FC, and it worked out pretty well there. If I were to go back to coaching somewhere, it would all start again. I’m me! I can’t just take over and coach. Then I’d be completely involved everywhere again. And I just don’t see that happening anymore.”

"He (Roy Hodgson) came up to me and asked how I was. In the same breath he said to me: ‘I miss it.’ And I was like: ‘What?’ Roy is 77 years old – and he wants to be a coach again. Unbelievable! When we played against Crystal Palace with Liverpool, I always asked him whether his apartment was damp or why he was standing on the pitch now.”

"But Jose Mourinho also said to me: ‘This is not the end.’ There are those coaches who always want to do that. I loved being a coach, but I was never addicted.”

While Klopp’s name will always be linked with major jobs, including international roles and elite clubs, the German insists he's content with his current off-field role and lifestyle, and any coaching return seems unlikely. For now, fans may have to get used to seeing Klopp more in studios and boardrooms than on the touchline.