Borussia Dortmund has parted ways with sporting director Sebastian Kehl. © APA/afp / LEON KUEGELER

Dortmund fires Kehl: Rumors about successor

Elversberg's sporting director Nils-Ole Book is said to be among the candidates at Borussia Dortmund in the search for a successor to BVB sporting director Sebastian Kehl.

March 23, 2026

From: dpa/sn

As reported by Sky and Kicker, the 40-year-old meets the requirements of the Bundesliga's second-placed team and has therefore been targeted. According to Bild, Alexander Rosen, formerly sporting director at TSG Hoffenheim, is also a possible candidate for the top job in Dortmund.

Book is considered the key architect of SV Elversberg's remarkable rise. Under his leadership, the Saarland village club climbed from the Regionalliga Südwest (fourth tier) to the 2. Bundesliga (second tier), where the team currently occupies second place – a direct promotion spot. As sporting director and later sporting director on the board, he formed a long and successful partnership with coach Horst Steffen, who left for Werder Bremen last year after failing to secure promotion to the Bundesliga.

Book proved to have a knack for signing players like Nick Woltemade, Paul Wanner, Fisnik Asllani, and Younes Ebnoutalib. Under Book's leadership, Elversberg also usually managed to successfully compensate for the departure of their best players. The former professional (who played for MSV Duisburg, among others) was repeatedly considered a candidate for other clubs, such as Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Rumors also about Frankfurt's Krösche

Amidst this speculation, Book extended his contract with SVE in October 2025. The club did not disclose the contract's duration at the time. Despite the squad overhaul in the summer, Elversberg is now back in contention at the top of the table.

Kehl was also a professional player for Borussia Dortmund for a long time. © APA/epa / PETER STEFFEN

Borussia Dortmund are keen to fill the sporting director position as quickly as possible following their immediate dismissal of Kehl on Sunday. The 46-year-old had to leave BVB after 24 years as a player and executive – the decision came as a surprise at this point.

Recently, there had also been rumors about a possible move to Dortmund for Eintracht Frankfurt's sporting director, Markus Krösche. The 45-year-old still has a contract with the Hessian club until 2028. "I'm not the type to plan my next steps. I'm in the here and now. And I'm very happy at Eintracht Frankfurt," Krösche said on Saturday in the ZDF "Sportstudio" program regarding any potential thoughts of leaving.