Ingolstadt sack pioneering female coach Sabrina Wittman

Sabrina Wittmann, who in 2024 became the first female head coach in the top-three men's football divisions in Germany, was fired Thursday after a rocky start to the season. Wittmann leaves after three losses in Ingolstadt's last four games left the team 13th in the 20-team third division, a setback to any chances of promotion. The club's managing director for sport, Harald Gärtner, said "a change of direction" was needed after recent results and an analysis of the club's broader development. "On a human and personal level this decision was very hard for us," he said. Wittmann said she had wanted to stay. "I would have been very happy to continue and to carry on with a team full of exceptional characters," she said. "Unfortunately the trust required for that is no longer there and the club has decided on a different solution." The club did not immediately name a replacement. Wittma