FC St. Pauli parts ways with Alexander Blessin as Marcel Rapp emerges as leading candidate
FC St. Pauli has dismissed Alexander Blessin following relegation to the 2. Bundesliga; Marcel Rapp is widely reported as the front-runner to become the club’s next head coach.
St. Pauli parts with Alexander Blessin
Alexander Blessin, 53, will not continue as FC St. Pauli’s head coach as the club prepares for life in the 2. Bundesliga. The decision, announced 19 days after the team’s confirmed relegation, ends a tenure that included a contract running until summer 2027.
Club sporting director Andreas Bornemann said the leadership concluded a separation and a “fresh start” this summer was the best course, according to the club statement. The move follows prolonged uncertainty over Blessin’s commitment after the season and a run of poor results that ultimately cost the team its top-flight status.
Marcel Rapp emerges as leading candidate
Multiple media outlets report that Marcel Rapp, 47, is the preferred successor to Blessin at the Millerntor. Rapp coached Holstein Kiel from 2021 until February 2026, a spell that included promotion to the Bundesliga in 2024 and a subsequent relegation campaign.
Kiel retained Rapp initially after the immediate drop from the top flight but parted ways with him when a second successive relegation loomed. Should St. Pauli confirm Rapp’s appointment, he would inherit a squad rebuilding for the 2. Bundesliga with a clear mandate to stabilise performance.
Club cites need for a fresh start after relegation
The club framed the split as a proactive decision to allow a new coach to lead the upcoming reset. Bornemann, cited in the announcement, praised Blessin’s qualities while stressing that a different approach was needed for the next chapter.
Blessin had told club officials and the media in mid-May that continuing with St. Pauli remained an option, but he did not commit publicly in the weeks that followed. That hesitation, combined with on-field decline, appears to have accelerated the leadership’s choice to make a change.
On-field struggles and a damaging losing run
St. Pauli’s slide this season was characterized by defensive fragility and an anemic attack that produced the weakest scoring record in the league. The team suffered a nine-game losing streak in the first half of the season and collected only three points from the final ten matches, trends that ultimately sealed its fate.
Key players such as centre-back Hauke Wahl, captain Jackson Irvine and Eric Smith were unable to reproduce the form that helped the club survive in previous seasons. High-profile signings, including record recruit Martijn Kaars, failed to have the intended impact on results.
Squad composition and transfer priorities
With the club slipping into the second tier, immediate roster decisions will be central to the new coach’s remit. Sporting director Bornemann and the new manager must prune and rebuild a squad that showed depth and form problems across several positions.
Financial constraints will continue to shape recruitment, and the club will need to address defensive solidity and offensive productivity as priorities. How many current first-team players remain and which targets the club pursues will become clearer once a head coach is formally appointed.
Timeline for pre-season and coaching transition
FC St. Pauli is scheduled to begin preparation for the 2. Bundesliga on June 26, and the club has set a fast timeline to appoint a new manager and assemble the squad. The compressed calendar leaves little margin for a protracted search, which may explain the club’s swift move to identify Rapp as a leading candidate.
A prompt coaching appointment would give the new manager time to evaluate the squad, shape training plans, and influence transfer decisions ahead of the pre-season. The incoming coach will also face immediate expectations to restore stability and set realistic performance goals for the upcoming campaign.
The club now faces the practical task of translating its intent for a “fresh start” into concrete moves on and off the pitch, while managing supporter expectations after a season that ended in relegation.
