COLOGNE, Germany (AP) — Cologne extended coach Steffen Baumgart's contract by another year to 2025 on Wednesday in a sign of continuity at a Bundesliga club facing a transfer ban.
Known for wearing a flat cap and showing his emotions on the touchline, Baumgart placed seventh with Cologne in his first season in charge last year with a squad which had barely avoided relegation under his predecessor. The team is 11th currently.
His contract had been due to expire at the end of the 2023-24 season.
Baumgart rose rapidly through the German soccer system after coaching in the fourth-tier regional divisions as recently as 2016. He led Paderborn to back-to-back promotions from the third tier to the Bundesliga, where the club lasted a single season in 2019-20, and then joined Cologne in 2021.
FIFA banned Cologne from signing new players for two transfer windows over the disputed acquisition of a young forward from Slovenia. The club has filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport asking for the ban to be suspended until the case is decided, which is the usual procedure.
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