Following the departure of coach Heiner Backhaus, second division club Eintracht Braunschweig announced his successor on the same day.
Lars Kornetka will be the new head coach of Eintracht Braunschweig, succeeding Heiner Backhaus. The second division club announced this on Tuesday evening. Forecasting had already reported that the Lower Saxony club had set its sights on Kornetka.
The 48-year-old has signed a league-independent contract until June 30, 2028, and will already be on the bench for Saturday’s home game against Fortuna Düsseldorf.
Kornetka is currently assistant coach of the Austrian national team under Ralf Rangnick and will continue in this role until the 2026 World Cup. During the World Cup in the USA, Mexico, and Canada, Kornetka will be involved with the ÖFB. The Austrian, who also has Polish citizenship, has not yet worked as a head coach, but has worked as an analyst for coaching greats such as Rangnick, Roger Schmidt, Heiko Herrlich, Huub Stevens, and Pep Guardiola. “In Lars, we are signing a very ambitious coach who has already gained a wealth of experience at the highest level in a wide variety of roles. Lars completely convinced us in very good discussions, both with his approach to content and in terms of interpersonal skills,” explains sporting director Benjamin Kessel.
He continues: “He is a communicative, positive character and exudes a great deal of seniority. In addition, his energy and immediate willingness to take on the task with us were 100% palpable. In our current sporting situation, this step requires full conviction on both sides – that is tangible and forms the foundation for successful cooperation. We are convinced that Lars – together with the entire coaching team – will stabilize the team in the short term and that we will be successful together in the long term.“
Kornetka’s dual role, which will continue until the summer, was not an obstacle for Eintracht either. ”We don’t want to spoil Lars’ dream of the World Cup, which he has worked hard to achieve with the national team. It was communicated openly from the start and was understandable for us,“ says Kessel. The new head coach is looking forward to his new challenge: ”I’ve been following the club for a long time: Braunschweig is a name in German soccer that is associated with many successes and extremely high fan identification,” says Kornetka.
He adds: “The discussions with those responsible were productive from the very beginning, so we quickly reached an agreement. I would like to thank Benjamin Kessel and those responsible for their trust. I would also like to thank Ralf Rangnick for his open and honest communication. My sincere thanks also go to those responsible at the ÖFB who are supporting us on this path.”