Joachim Löw facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Joachim Löw

Löw as Germany manager in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Joachim Löw
Date of birth	(1960-02-03) 3 February 1960 (age 65)
Place of birth	Schönau im Schwarzwald, West Germany
Height	1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Youth career
	TuS Schönau 1896
	FC Schönau
	Eintracht Freiburg
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1978–1980	SC Freiburg	71	(18)
1980–1981	VfB Stuttgart	4	(0)
1981–1982	Eintracht Frankfurt	24	(5)
1982–1984	SC Freiburg	65	(25)
1984–1985	Karlsruher SC	24	(2)
1985–1989	SC Freiburg	116	(38)
1989–1992	FC Schaffhausen
1992–1994	FC Winterthur
1994–1995	FC Frauenfeld
International career
1979–1980	West Germany U21	4	(0)
Managerial career
1992–1994	FC Winterthur (youth)
1994–1995	FC Frauenfeld
1995–1996	VfB Stuttgart (assistant)
1996	VfB Stuttgart (interim)
1996–1998	VfB Stuttgart
1998–1999	Fenerbahçe
1999–2000	Karlsruher SC
2000–2001	Adanaspor
2001–2002	Tirol Innsbruck
2003–2004	Austria Wien
2004–2006	Germany (assistant)
2006–2021	Germany
Medal record Men's football Representing  Germany (as manager) FIFA World Cup Winner 2014 Brazil Bronze 2010 South Africa UEFA European Championship Runner-up 2008 Austria-Switzerland Bronze 2012 Poland-Ukraine Bronze 2016 France FIFA Confederations Cup Winner 2017 Russia
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Joachim "Jogi" Löw (born on February 3, 1960) is a German football coach and former player. He was the manager of the German national team from 2006 to 2021. During his time as manager, he led Germany to win the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. He also won the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia. In March 2021, Löw announced he would leave his job after the Euro 2020 tournament.

Joachim Löw has managed and won more matches than any other head coach of the German national football team. He led the team in 189 games, winning 120 of them.

Playing Career Highlights

Joachim Löw started his football career in 1978 with SC Freiburg. He played for this club three times during his career. He was their top goal scorer for many years.

In 1980, Löw joined VfB Stuttgart in the top German league, the Bundesliga. He also played for Eintracht Frankfurt and Karlsruher SC. He returned to Freiburg for four more years. Löw finished his playing career in Switzerland, playing for FC Schaffhausen and FC Winterthur. He also played four games for the West Germany national under-21 team.

Managerial Career

Early Coaching Years (1992–2004)

Joachim Löw began coaching while he was still a player. He worked as a youth coach for FC Winterthur. In 1994–95, he was a player-coach for FC Frauenfeld.

Becoming a Club Manager

In 1995, Löw became an assistant coach at VfB Stuttgart. He became the main manager in August 1996. His first game as head coach was a big 4–0 win against Schalke 04. Stuttgart finished fourth in the league in his first season.

In the 1997–98 season, Stuttgart reached the final of the DFB-Ligapokal, but lost to Bayern Munich. They also made it to the final of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. However, they lost 1–0 to Chelsea in that final. Löw left Stuttgart in May 1998.

Löw then moved to Turkey to manage Fenerbahçe in 1998. The team finished third in the Turkish league. He later returned to Germany to manage Karlsruher SC in 1999. He stayed there until April 2000.

Coaching in Turkey and Austria

Löw went back to Turkey to coach Adanaspor from December 2000 to March 2001. After that, he moved to Austria. He became the manager of Tirol Innsbruck in October 2001. He led them to win the Austrian Bundesliga title in 2002.

After Tirol Innsbruck faced financial problems, Löw joined Austria Wien in 2003. He managed the team until March 2004. During his time there, Austria Wien won the 2003 Austrian Supercup.

Germany Assistant Manager (2004–2006)

In 2004, Jürgen Klinsmann became the head coach of the German national team. He asked Löw to be his assistant manager. Klinsmann and Löw shared ideas about playing attacking football.

Under their leadership, the German team reached the semi-finals of the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup. They scored 15 goals in 5 matches, which was the most in the tournament. Germany finished third in the competition.

At the 2006 FIFA World Cup, which was held in Germany, the team played very well. They won their group matches and beat Sweden in the Round of 16. They then had a tough game against Argentina and won after a penalty shootout. In the semi-final, Germany lost to Italy. They finished third in the World Cup after beating Portugal 3–1.

Klinsmann and Löw also brought in new ideas for the national team. They focused on developing young players and improving fitness. They also added a "Business Manager" and a mental coach to help the players.

Germany Manager (2006–2021)

On July 12, 2006, Joachim Löw became the new manager of the German national team. He wanted to continue the attacking style of play that he and Klinsmann had started. Löw aimed to make the team pass the ball faster.

UEFA Euro 2008

Löw had a great start as manager, winning his first five matches. This was the best start for a new German head coach ever. Germany qualified for Euro 2008.

At the tournament, Germany won their first game against Poland. They lost to Croatia in their second game. In the final group game against Austria, Löw was sent off for arguing with an official. Germany still won the match and moved to the quarter-finals.

Löw changed the team's formation for the knockout stages. Germany defeated Portugal 3–2 in the quarter-finals. They then beat Turkey 3–2 in the semi-finals. In the final, Germany lost 1–0 to a strong Spain team.

2010 FIFA World Cup

Löw in 2011

Germany qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa without losing a single game. Löw brought many young players to the tournament. Germany had the second youngest team in the World Cup.

Germany won their group and then beat England 4–1 in the first knockout round. They followed this with an impressive 4–0 win against Argentina in the quarter-finals. In the semi-final, Germany lost 1–0 to Spain again. Germany won the third-place play-off against Uruguay 3–2, earning bronze medals.

UEFA Euro 2012

Germany continued their strong form by winning all ten of their qualifying matches for Euro 2012. Löw signed a new contract to stay with Germany until 2014.

In the tournament, Germany won all three of their group matches. They beat Portugal, the Netherlands, and Denmark. In the quarter-finals, Germany defeated Greece 4–2. However, they were knocked out in the semi-finals after a 2–1 loss to Italy.

2014 FIFA World Cup Victory

Löw at the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Germany started their 2014 FIFA World Cup journey with a big 4–0 win over Portugal. They drew 2–2 with Ghana and beat the United States 1–0. In the Round of 16, Germany won 2–1 against Algeria after extra time. They then beat France 1–0 in the quarter-finals.

In the semi-final, Germany played against the host nation, Brazil. Germany won the match by an amazing score of 7–1. This was Brazil's worst defeat in World Cup history. Löw then led Germany to win their fourth World Cup title. They beat Argentina 1–0 in the final with a goal from Mario Götze in extra time.

After this historic win, Löw received the FIFA World Coach of the Year award for 2014.

UEFA Euro 2016

Germany started Euro 2016 qualifying with a win against Scotland. They had some mixed results but eventually qualified for the tournament. Löw signed a contract extension until 2018.

At Euro 2016, Germany won their group. They defeated Ukraine and Northern Ireland, and drew with Poland. In the Round of 16, they beat Slovakia 3–0. Germany then faced Italy in the quarter-finals. After a 1–1 draw, Germany won the game in a penalty shootout. In the semi-finals, Germany lost 2–0 to the host nation, France.

During this time, Joachim Löw was even featured as a collectible Lego minifigure as part of a special German football team series!

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup

Germany participated in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. Löw led a young German team to victory in this tournament. They won their group matches against Australia and Cameroon, and drew with Chile.

In the semi-final, Germany defeated Mexico 4–1. This victory marked Löw's 100th win as Germany's coach. On July 2, 2017, Löw led Germany to win their first-ever FIFA Confederations Cup title. They beat Chile 1–0 in the final.

2018 FIFA World Cup

Löw continued as Germany manager after Euro 2016. He extended his contract until 2022. Germany qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

However, the tournament did not go well for Germany. They lost their first group match 1–0 to Mexico. They then won 2–1 against Sweden. In their final group game, Germany lost 2–0 to South Korea. This meant Germany was eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 1938.

UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020

Despite the early exit from the World Cup, Löw decided to stay on as coach. Germany had some difficult results in the new 2018–19 UEFA Nations League. In November 2020, Germany lost 6–0 to Spain in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League. This was Germany's worst defeat since 1931.

On March 9, 2021, Löw announced he would step down after Euro 2020. On June 29, 2021, England beat Germany in the Round of 16 of Euro 2020. This loss ended Löw's time as Germany's coach. He had been in charge for almost 15 years, which is the longest for an international coach in Europe. His former assistant, Hansi Flick, took over as manager.

Personal Life

Joachim Löw is Roman Catholic. He was an altar boy when he was younger.

He married Daniela Löw in 1986. They met in 1978 and dated for eight years before getting married. They do not have any children.

Managerial Statistics

Honours and Awards

Team Achievements (as Manager)

VfB Stuttgart

• DFB-Pokal: 1996–97 (German Cup)

Tirol Innsbruck

• Austrian Football Bundesliga: 2001–02 (Austrian League)

Austria Wien

• Austrian Supercup: 2003

Germany

• FIFA World Cup: 2014
• FIFA Confederations Cup: 2017

Individual Awards

• Sport Bild German Sports Manager of the Year: 2010
• German Football Man of the Year: 2011, 2014
• German Football Manager of the Year: 2014
• FIFA World Coach of the Year: 2014
• World Soccer Awards Manager of the Year: 2014
• IFFHS World's Best National Coach: 2014, 2017
• L'Équipe Sports Manager of the Year: 2010
• FIFA World Cup Dream Team: 2014
• Silbernes Lorbeerblatt: 2010, 2014 (Germany's highest sports award)
• Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande: 2010 (German Order of Merit)
• IFFHS World's Best Man National Coach of the Decade: 2011–2020

Images for kids

• 

  Löw and his assistant Hansi Flick in 2006

• 

  Löw in 2011

See also

In Spanish: Joachim Löw para niños