Barcelona Appoints Hansi Flick As Head Coach

Barcelona have confirmed the appointment of former Bayern Munich and Germany coach Hansi Flick as the new manager on a two-year deal. Flick takes over from Xavi Hernández, who departed the club today following his dismissal last week.

“FC Barcelona and Hansi Flick have reached an agreement for the German to become men’s first team football coach until 30 June 2026,” Barça said in a statement.

Xavi Hernandez concluded his final game on Sunday with a 2-1 win against Sevilla in La Liga. He has chosen to waive the remaining year of his salary, which was estimated to be around €12 million gross.

Nevertheless, he will receive a significant portion of the €2.5m he spent personally to facilitate his departure from his previous with Al Sadd in 2021. Additionally, the six members of his support staff will also be compensated for the year of their contracts, which is expected to cost Barça approximately €4m.

Since last September, Flick has been unemployed after being dismissed by the German national team due to an early exit in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup and a series of disappointing results post-tournament.

Before this, he achieved remarkable success at Bayern by clinching the Champions League title as part of a historic treble in 2020 before transitioning to the role of the German national team coach in the summer of 2021.

Barça’s pursuit of the German coach has been ongoing for some time. In 2021, there was a report indicating that club president Joan Laporta had inquired about his availability while he was leading Bayern. At that point, Flick had already committed to the German job.

Notwithstanding, Laporta has remained an admirer, and discussions with Flick’s representatives have been continuous ever since Xavi’s announcement in January that he would be stepping down.