Union Berlin has made a definitive decision regarding the future of interim head coach Marie-Louise Eta, announcing she will not remain with the men's team beyond this season. Club president Dirk Zingler stated that Eta's appointment, which made her the first woman to lead a men's side in one of Europe's top five leagues, is strictly temporary.

Eta took charge following the dismissal of Steffen Baumgart and will oversee the final five Bundesliga matches. Regardless of her results, she will then transition to her previously agreed role as head coach of Union Berlin's women's team this summer.

Zingler emphasized that tying her future with the men's team to her short-term performance would be unfair. "If she’s really good, she’ll stay with the men; if she’s not so good, she’ll go to the women — I’m not even having that discussion," he told Sky Sport Germany. He called such a premise a "disservice" to both Eta and women's football as a whole, stressing that coaching appointments should be professional and fact-based.

The 34-year-old former Germany youth international, who was promoted from her role as the club's U-19 coach, has previous first-team experience from a brief stint in 2024. Her historic appointment, however, was met with some online sexism, which the club's director of football, Horst Heldt, condemned earlier this week.

Eta's immediate task is to steady a Union Berlin side sitting 11th in the table, comfortably clear of the relegation battle but distant from European qualification. Her journey underscores a significant, albeit limited, breakthrough, highlighting the ongoing evolution of coaching roles in professional football.