Michael Preetz (born 17 August 1967) is a German former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a forward. He spent his whole career in Germany, playing for

Fortuna Düsseldorf Düsseldorfer Turn- und Sportverein Fortuna 1895 e.V., commonly known as Fortuna Düsseldorf (), is a German football club in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, which competes in the 2. Bundesliga. Founded in 1895, Fortuna entered the league ...

1. FC Saarbrücken 1. FC Saarbrücken (german: 1. Fußball-Club Saarbrücken e. V.) is a football club based in Saarbrücken, Saarland. The club plays in the 3. Liga, which is the third tier of football in Germany. The club began its existence as the football de ...

MSV Duisburg Meidericher Spielverein 02 e. V. Duisburg, commonly known as simply MSV Duisburg (), is a German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed ''Die Zebras'' for their traditional striped jerseys, the club was on ...

and

SG Wattenscheid 09 SG Wattenscheid 09 is a Football in Germany, German association football club located in Wattenscheid, Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club claimed an official founding date of 18 September 1909 as Ballspiel-Verein Wattenscheid out of the me ...

, but he is mostly remembered for his seven-year spell at Hertha BSC where he ended his career. After retiring from active play, he stayed with the club, going directly into management.

Playing career

Michael Preetz scored 178 goals in the top two divisions of the German league system. In 1998–99 he won the top scorer crown of the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

. His good form in this season brought him a call-up to Erich Ribbeck's Germany national team in early 1999. Overall, he won seven caps.

Managerial career

On 7 June 2009, Preetz was named as the new general manager of Hertha BSC, replacing former

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's football team is currently part of Germany's first division, the Bundesliga. VfB S ...

and FC Bayern Munich forward

Dieter Hoeneß Dieter Hoeneß (born 7 January 1953) is a German former professional football player and executive. A forward in his playing career, Hoeneß was mainly associated with Bayern Munich. After retiring, he stayed connected with football, working ...

. On 23 January 2021, Preetz, along with manager Bruno Labbadia, was relieved of his duties.

Managerial record

Honours

Hertha BSC * Ligapokal: 2001, 2002; runners-up 2000

References

1967 births Living people Footballers from Düsseldorf German footballers Germany international footballers Germany youth international footballers Germany under-21 international footballers Association football forwards 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup players Fortuna Düsseldorf players SG Wattenscheid 09 players 1. FC Saarbrücken players MSV Duisburg players Hertha BSC players Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players Kicker-Torjägerkanone Award winners Recipients of the Order of Merit of Berlin West German footballers {{germany-footy-forward-1960s-stub