History Made Marie-by Louise Eta Becomes First Female Assistant Coach in Europe’s Top 5 Leagues

Union Berlin’s Marie-Louise Eta Makes History as First Female Assistant Coach
For the first time in the history of Europe’s top five leagues, a woman has taken over the responsibility of coaching a men’s team. Marie-Louise Eta has achieved this feat. She was appointed as the interim assistant coach of the German Bundesliga club Union Berlin. Previously, she worked as an assistant coach for the club’s Under-19 team.
Last Saturday, Union Berlin faced Bundesliga bottom-dwellers FC Heidenheim. After a 3-0 defeat against Heidenheim, Union Berlin’s head coach Urs Fischer was dismissed. In his place, 34-year-old Marie-Louise Eta was given the responsibility of assistant coach. She made history by becoming the first female assistant coach in the Bundesliga. In 2014, when then-interim manager Nenad Bjelica was serving a ban, she stood in the dugout for the first time during a match against Darmstadt as a female coach. Union Berlin won that match 1-0.
Marie-Louise Eta has also played for Germany’s women’s national youth teams. Since July 2023, she has been working as an assistant coach for Union Berlin’s Under-19 team. There are also discussions about her taking over as the head coach of the men’s team in the upcoming summer. The club’s sporting director, Horst Heldt, said that Marie-Louise’s performance has been satisfactory and that a new invitation for her to continue with the team has been extended.
Currently, Union Berlin is in 14th place in the Bundesliga standings after 18 matches. They have won only two matches since 2023. After the defeat against Heidenheim, the team is only 7 points away from the relegation zone. Eta said that the team’s current position is not yet secure, but she is hopeful that by staying united, the team will be able to improve.
It is worth noting that the first female coach in professional men’s football was Carolina Morace of Italy, who took charge of the team Viterbese in 1999, though for a very short period.