Grasshopper appoints Olaf Janssen as head coach following Peter Zeidler dismissal

Managerial transition at Grasshopper

Grasshopper Club Zürich confirmed the appointment of Olaf Janssen as their new head coach on Saturday morning. The 59-year-old German manager signed a contract that runs through the end of the season and takes charge of the first team with immediate effect. Janssen replaces his compatriot Peter Zeidler, who was dismissed on 21 September after barely five months in charge. Zeidler, a 64-year-old former Lausanne-Sport coach, was relieved of his duties following a difficult start to the campaign that yielded eight points from the opening nine Swiss Super League matches. Consecutive heavy defeats before the international break, losing 2-5 against Sion and 1-5 against Luzern, sealed his departure. The Zurich club, the most titled in Swiss football history, currently occupies tenth place in the league standings, sitting two points ahead of bottom-placed Lausanne-Sport.

Transition period and staff integration

Following Zeidler's departure, Grasshopper spent eleven days finalizing their new coaching structure while the existing technical staff handled team management on an interim basis. The restructuring began earlier in the week when the club announced Dutch coach Edwin de Graaf as the new assistant coach on Wednesday. On Friday, Janssen was seen in the stands alongside sporting director Dries Bousatta during Grasshopper's friendly fixture against Yverdon Sport. The club stated that its strategic direction centres on proactive, attacking football, individual player development, and creating clear progression routes for young talent. The club confirmed that Janssen committed throughout the hiring process to collaborate closely with the existing technical staff and the sporting organisation to establish this playing identity.

Janssen commented on his philosophy upon taking over the role:

I have learned in my previous stations how important clear structures and consistent development work are for sustainable success.

Track record in German club management

The Zurich role represents Janssen's first position as a head coach outside Germany. The Krefeld-born manager arrives after a short spell at SV Sandhausen in the German fourth-tier Regionalliga, where he was dismissed in March 2026 after 31 competitive matches and less than a full season in charge. Prior to his time at Sandhausen, Janssen spent four and a half years at Viktoria Köln in the 3. Liga, overseeing 192 matches. During that tenure, he became the longest-serving head coach in the German third tier, guided the team to four Middle Rhine Cup titles, and integrated numerous academy players into the first team. His earlier head coaching stints in the 2. Bundesliga included spells at Dynamo Dresden and FC St. Pauli, as well as a short period as interim head coach at VfB Stuttgart.

Decades of coaching and playing experience

Beyond his head coaching roles, Janssen accumulated extensive coaching experience as an assistant across several top-tier environments. He worked under Bruno Labbadia as an assistant coach at both VfL Wolfsburg and Hertha BSC, and also held assistant coaching positions at VfB Stuttgart, 1860 Munich, and FC St. Pauli. On the international stage, Janssen spent four years working as an assistant to head coach Berti Vogts with the Azerbaijan national team. As a professional player, the midfielder recorded 241 Bundesliga matches for 1. FC Köln and Eintracht Frankfurt, accumulating over 300 competitive appearances during his playing career. He concluded his active playing career in Switzerland in the spring of 2000, appearing in seven matches during the promotion and relegation round for AC Bellinzona before retiring.