INTERVIEW: "I was afraid of closing the door" – Pioneering Ingolstadt coach Sabrina Wittmann on opening a new path for women in football

It sparked widespread media coverage when Sabrina Wittmann was appointed head coach of German 3. Liga side FC Ingolstadt 04 on a permanent basis in the summer of 2024 after a successful spell as interim boss.

In doing so, Ingolstadt gave Wittmann the chance to coach a men’s team in Germany’s top three leagues – something no woman had ever done before. The historic appointment placed a unique kind of pressure on the shoulders of the young coach.

“I knew I was the only woman. There were so many cameras and media, so I recognised it was something special. I knew I opened the door a little for women, and at the beginning I was honestly afraid of closing the door again,” Wittmann, now 34, revealed in an interview with Bulinews.com and other selected media.

As time passed, however, Wittmann has gradually grown more comfortable with the spotlight. The longer she remains in the role, the more the focus shifts away from her gender and towards her footballing ideas.

“I told myself, with the people around me who have my back, not to talk much about it. And eventually I got used to the pressure I felt at the beginning,” Wittmann said.

“The good thing is that I get asked a lot more questions about football than at the beginning, and that’s something I love.”

While Wittmann embraces the chance to be a role model, she ultimately hopes to be judged on her work rather than the fact that she is a woman.

“It’s okay for me to be the first woman to do this, I’m really proud of it, but at the end I want to be a good coach, a good human being towards my players and stuff like that,” she said.

“I have people over here who never rated me just as a woman. That’s probably something that isn’t common everywhere.”

Finding a new dream

Almost two years after taking the reins at FC Ingolstadt, Wittmann has now acquired her UEFA Pro Licence – meaning, as she puts it, “you’re able to train every team on this planet.”

After finishing 10th in Wittmann’s first full season in charge, Ingolstadt are once again sitting in mid-table in the 3. Liga.

Despite attracting interest from other clubs during her time in charge, Wittmann has chosen to stay with her hometown team – at least for the foreseeable future – as Ingolstadt announced a contract extension for the 34-year-old on Friday.

“I didn’t extend my contract because I’m afraid of not being able to coach somewhere else. I do believe that’s going to happen because I had a lot of conversations with decision-makers from other clubs,” said Wittmann.

She explains that, after achieving one of her biggest dreams when she obtained the UEFA Pro Licence earlier this year, her focus is now firmly on continuing the project at Ingolstadt.

“It’s going to take a while to find a new dream, to be honest. Right now I’m really focused on getting back on track with my team. I would love to get promoted to the second league with Ingolstadt in the next two years or whatever and hopefully coach a team in the first league one day. But I’m not thinking much about it right now.”

Instead, Wittmann is focused on creating a sustainable foundation at the club following a major squad overhaul.

“It’s about building something. We lost 19 players last season, and not in a sad way, but we developed players who went up to the second or even first league. The better the players get, the better the team gets. I think we did a good job even if we didn’t get promoted to the second league. We need to build something and not just for one year.”

But Wittmann clearly has ambitions — and maybe, if all goes well, she’ll one day break another barrier as the first female head coach in the Bundesliga history.

“One day I’ll probably leave, and hopefully because I’ll be able to coach an even higher-ranked team. It’s going to be hard, but in five to ten years, I hope things will change – not just for me, but for every woman who wants to be a coach,” Wittmann said.

Currently 12th in the 3. Liga, Wittmann and Ingolstadt continue their campaign against SSV Verl on Sunday evening.