Erik ten Hag started his playing career at Twente Enschede near to his birthplace Haaksbergen close to the German border. After brief spells at other Dutch clubs the central defender returned to FC Twente in his mid 20s where he stayed for six years until the end of his career in 2002. After a total of 299 appearances in the Eredivisie he started his career as a coach.
After several years as the youth coach, he became the assistant coach to Fred Rutten with the Twente first team in 2006. After three seasons, Rutten and ten Hag moved on to PSV Eindhoven for three years. His first job as head coach followed in 2012/13 at Go Ahead Eagles where he achieved promotion to the top flight. Ten Hag then took over as coach of the Bayern Munich second team where he won the Regional League in Bavaria and he stayed for two years.
He returned to the Netherlands in 2015 where he was head coach and sporting director at top-flight club FC Utrecht. The record champions Ajax came calling for ten Hag shortly after Christmas in 2017 – that marked the start of an impressive story of success.
After ending his first season without a trophy, he led Ajax to the league and cup double in 2018/19. In the UEFA Champions League there were wins against Juventus and holders Real Madrid before going out at the semi-final stage against Tottenham Hotspur.
Ajax were top of the table in the following season that was not completed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Another double followed in 2020/21 and the third Dutch league title a year later. During his successful time in Amsterdam, ten Hag helped players like Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong to move on to top European clubs. He then took the same route himself.
Ten Hag was appointed head coach at Manchester United for the 2022/23 season. As the successor to Ralf Rangnick, he finished third in his first season in the Premier League and won the Carabao Cup with the English club. That campaign ended with a narrow defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup final but the following season brought success over the local rivals to lift the FA Cup. After winning two trophies the end at Manchester United came after two and a half years at the end of October last year.
The trophy collector is looking to bring his wealth of experience to Bayer 04. Ten Hag is the third Dutch head coach at Leverkusen following on from Rinus Michels (1988 to 1989) and Peter Bosz (2018 to 2021). Sporting managing director Simon Rolfes attributed ten Hag with "impressive success on the pitch" and "technically demanding and dominant football."
Ten Hag himself, who speaks German, was determined and ambitious on signing the contract: "Bayer 04 are one of the best clubs in Germany and also among the top clubs in Europe. I've come to Leverkusen to continue with the ambition shown in recent years. It's an attractive challenge to set up something together in this period of change and develop an ambitious team.”
While most of the players from the Bayer 04 Women's Bundesliga squad are enjoying their summer break, four players are again away on international duty. Three of them are in action in the UEFA Women's Nations League and three are away with Germany junior teams.
Show moreWelcome, Erik ten Hag! Bayer 04 have appointed the 55-year-old Dutchman as the new head coach on a contract to 30 June 2027. Bayer04.de provides a closer introduction to ten Hag who recently coached the English club Manchester United and above all had great success at Ajax.
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Bayer 04 were in the Bundesliga title race well into spring and also progressed to the latter stages of the DFB Pokal. Ultimately, the team were unable to defend either title, but the Werkself did set a new Bundesliga record in their final game of the season, having bid an emotional farewell to Xabi Alonso and Jonathan Tah at the BayArena the previous week. It was the end of an era, as bayer04.de looks back on the 2024/25 season, with part two looking at January through to May.
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With the clash at Mainz 05 on the 34th and final matchday of the 2024/25 Bundesliga, another eventful season came to an end. The Werkself finished as runners-up in second place and can be proud of the joint third-best points tally in the club's history. Bayer04.de takes a look back - firstly at the period from the summer until the end of the year, in which the Werkself had to deal with high expectations and fluctuated between impressive performances, squandered leads and absolute top form.
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Bayer 04 will carry out important optimisations and maintenance work on the club's digital platforms from 09:00 on 26 May until likely 30 May.
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