Rino Matarazzo: The New Jerseyan ‘with a clever touch’ on his 25 years in German soccer

“The great unknown with a clever touch,” is how the Stuttgarter Zeitung headline in June 2020 described Pellegrino “Rino” Matarazzo.

VfB Stuttgart had named the New Jerseyan its head coach in the middle of the 2019-20 season to lead it back to the first division. Matarazzo succeeded and thus became the first American-raised head coach of a Bundesliga club when VfB kicked off the 2020-21 season.

By the time VfB hired Matarazzo, the Columbia University graduate (with a degree in applied mathematics) had lived in Germany for two decades — the first 10 years as a lower division player and the next 10 coaching. 

The coaching began while he wrapped up his playing career with the reserve team of FC Nürnberg, which supported his coaching education. That included a 10-month German federation (DFB) course in Hennef. His roommate was Julian Nagelsmann, currently the head coach of the German national team.

In an account of how the friendship developed in a 2023 Forum: Das Wochenmagazin article headlined “Julian’s Big Brother,” Nagelsmann said: 

“We had a lot of fun, but also analytical moments during that time. I have immense respect for him. He’s a coach with great empathy, deep expertise and outstanding creativity. He’s a mathematician, and that’s how he approaches matches. He always prepares something unique.”

While coaching school roommates, Matarazzo and Nagelsmann were U-19 coaches at FC Nürnberg and TSG Hoffenheim, respectively.

Nagelsmann moved up to first team coach in 2016 — becoming at age 29 the youngest Bundesliga coach in history. Matarazzo joined Hoffenheim as U-17 coach in 2017. He then became Nagelsmann’s assistant coach, and was assistant coach to Alfred Schreuder when Nagelsmann left for RB Leipzig.

Following his 100-game tenure with VfB Stuttgart, Matarazzo was hired as head coach by relegation-threatened TSG Hoffenheim in February 2023 with 15 games left in the season and steered it to safety with a 12th-place finish. 

In Matarazzo’s second season, Hoffenheim finished in 7th place — marking its best Bundesliga finish in four years and earning Europa League qualification while outperforming clubs with larger payrolls and higher spending on player acquisitions.

But during the 2024-25 preseason, Hoffenheim experienced what Kicker Magazine called a “front-office earthquake.” Longtime managing director, the popular Alexander Rosen, who had hired Matarazzo, and four other front-office leaders were fired. One German journalist described the club as “doomed by constant power struggles.” Matarazzo was let go in early November with the team in 15th place. (Currently, Hoffenheim is in 15th place with three games left.)

It was amid that preseason last August when news broke that U.S. Soccer was interviewing Matarazzo for its men’s national team head coach position, which would ultimately go to Mauricio Pochettino.

---

SOCCER AMERICA: What is your current situation? Plans for the future?

PELLEGRINO MATARAZZO: At the moment, I am truly enjoying life and the time between gigs. It’s a valuable opportunity to reflect, reconnect with family and friends, travel, and focus on personal development.

My plans are simple. Take the next step forward and continue to grow. Direction is more important than magnitude. I have a clear vision and ambitious goals for my career as a head coach, but I am focused on finding the right environment, the right people and working with quality. The rest will fall into place as it should.

SA: For an American, you had a unique playing and coaching career in Germany, but it was coaching VfB Stuttgart to promotion that your story really came to light. What was that feat like for you?

PELLEGRINO MATARAZZO: Many top clubs in the second Bundesliga, even big names like Hamburg SV and Schalke 04, can attest to the fact that promotion to the first Bundesliga is no easy feat — it’s never a given. Securing promotion with VfB Stuttgart in my first stint as a head coach was a special way to start my career.

SA: In your second season with VfB, now in Bundesliga, you finished in ninth place and your team was praised for its attractive, courageous approach. In your second Bundesliga season …

PELLEGRINO MATARAZZO: That season truly left a mark. It was a year full of extraordinary challenges, even on a personal level. It culminated in a last-minute win against Cologne to avoid relegation. The stadium erupted like never before, and the energy we all felt in that one indescribable moment was unique — truly special. I am sure it will continue to echo in the hearts of all VfB fans who were there that day. It certainly does with me.

---

---