Joe Enochs, the American manager and former player for VfL Osnabrück is now trying to help SSV Jahn Regensburg climb back to the 2. Bundesliga, joined Footwork to talk about the move abroad 30 years ago which laid the foundation for a completely different future.
Every week, Dylan and Sean at Footwork Podcast bring you original interviews from players and coaches making their own path around the world. Below we have a short excerpt from their latest podcast guest Joe Enochs. You can find the full interview on your preferred streaming platform here (Footwork Podcast).
As footballers who go abroad in search of new opportunities, we usually feel we have a grip on how it will all look. On how it will all play out.
There is always a realization that occurs quite quickly. You can never plan too much in advance.
“It was a thing though where I was like, I’ll do this for a year, and then I’ll go back,” Joe Enochs tells us from the press room at SSV Jahn Regensburg one morning before training.
“After about six months, I played in my first game in St. Pauli Millerntor stadium,” Joe confesses, “I was like oh my god, I’m gonna stay here my whole life!”
Thirty years later, Joe has gathered a UEFA Pro License, played in over 350 games, and has managed close to 500 games in Germany.
Not bad for someone who thought they’d do a year abroad, almost like a summer camp, gain some new experiences, and then jet back to the USA.
Instead, he established himself as a professional.
The former midfielder is a bit of a household name in Osnabrück. His name was chanted and sung countless times in the Stadion an der Bremer Brücke.
Our particular favorite is ‘Joe Enochs, Geboren um Fußball zu spielen’. Joe Enochs was born to play football.
After hanging up the boots, Joe accumulated over 180 matches as the second-team coach and 90 matches as the first-team coach. An extremely rare feat.
The California-born manager lived and breathed the club for over twenty years. That doesn’t go unnoticed in a community in Germany.
“When I’m in Osnabrück, people think I’m an Osnabrücker, they think I’m from Osnabrück,” he admits, “I’m not judged as an American coach.”
Need some more proof? Head over to the Joe Enochs Sportsbar in Osnabrück and find out for yourselves.
The next opportunity following VFL turned out to be a former European Cup semi-finalist and a historically massive German club in FSV Zwickau.
Enochs managed to keep the financially struggling club in the 3rd Bundesliga for four seasons. A massive achievement.
Let’s talk about the here and now. Handed the reins to relegation-bound SSV Jahn Regensburg at the end of last season, the 52-year-old has kept them amongst the top two spots in the 3rd Bundesliga, winning eight matches in a row, and sitting currently seven points clear of 3rd place. All with fifteen new players.
Again, not bad for an American-born player who originally only saw Deutschland as an exciting yet temporary experience.
Joe replaced his initial expectations and ambitions and rode a truly different path to success both as a player and as a manager.
Germany became a new home. Finding that stability allowed him to experience the game in a way that he never had before.
“I love being here, I come to work every day with a smile on my face, it’s what I want to do.” The former San Francisco All Blacks player understands how he’s climbed the ranks. “Not taking that for granted is what made me successful.”
It also allowed him to learn an extensive amount about himself, improving as a manager and soaking in everything he could in one of the world’s footballing meccas.
“I wasn’t a great great player,” Enochs admits. “But I worked harder than a lot of people. That’s something I’m really proud of and I think that’s what makes me a great coach too.”
Would that have happened if he had never got on that plane headed for Hamburg? Or if he had left Osnabrück after a just few seasons?
You never know what doors can open if you remain shut to the possibility of living and experiencing something new.
It’s a story and perspective that American players (and coaches especially) should hear. It’s a blueprint for establishing yourself in a European environment, which so many of us wish to do.
Yank success overseas becomes more apparent with each season. There are several American coaches making waves abroad and blazing the path for the next generations.
Of course, Jesse Marsche comes to mind in the recent past. Pellegrino Matarazzo is another who is currently finding amazing heights at Hoffenheim.
Enochs deserves to be named on that same list.
He has cemented his name in German football and continues to find new ways to learn, grow, and challenge himself as a person and as a manager.
Find the full podcast episode here: Episode 1:30 Team First with Joe Enochs
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