Early career (2000–2004) On 1 July 2000, Hecking moved into management as he took over as manager at
Regionalliga Nord outfit
SC Verl. His first match was a 2–0 loss to
Eintracht Braunschweig on 1 August 2000. However, Hecking's proclamations that he was seeking a new position irked the club to such an extent they fired him after just 20 games in charge. He was sacked on 31 January 2001. Hecking wasn't free for long as another
Regionalliga Nord side,
VfB Lübeck, came calling on 27 March 2001. His first match was a 1–0 loss to
Fortuna Düsseldorf on 30 March 2001. Hecking achieved a solid job in the remaining games, leaving the club in third place, just one short of promotion. This set the basis for the following season as the team claimed the title and moved up into the 2. Bundesliga. The following season proved to have mixed results. Hecking led the club to the semi-finals of the
DFB-Pokal, where they were eliminated by eventual double winners
SV Werder Bremen after extra-time. After this, the team collapsed and was relegated with a 2–0 loss to
SpVgg Greuther Fürth on the final day. Hecking rejected the club's offer to stay and he left the club on 25 May 2004.
Alemannia Aachen (2004–2006) A week after leaving Lübeck,
Alemannia Aachen sporting director
Jörg Schmadtke announced that Hecking would replace departing coach
Jörg Berger. During the
2004–05 season, Alemannia Aachen participated in the
UEFA Cup, becoming the first ever 2. Bundesliga team to reach the third round, where they were eliminated by
AZ Alkmaar. The following season, Aachen finished second in the
2. Bundesliga and was promoted to the
Bundesliga for the first time in 36 years. Hecking's time guiding Alemannia Aachen in the top flight was short. Just three games in, he requested to be able to leave the club for his former club and fellow
Bundesliga side
Hannover 96 on 7 September 2006, to fill the vacancy left by their sacking of
Peter Neururer. Ironically, the final straw for
Neururer was a 0–3 home defeat to Hecking's
Alemannia Aachen.
Hannover 96 (2006–2009) Hecking became manager on 7 September 2006, officially taking the manager's job with immediate effect on 7 September 2006. Hannover paid compensation of nearly a million euros to get Hecking. Hecking recovered Hannover from a dismal start that left them bottom at the time of his arrival. The team also achieved a good run through to the quarter finals of the
cup, and finished comfortably in 11th place in the Bundesliga. During the
following season, Hanover were knocked out of the
German Cup in the second round by
Schalke 04. Hannover improved on their league position by finishing in eighth place, their best finish in 43 years. In the summer, Hecking suggested that the team would aim for a
UEFA Cup place in the following league season. Hannover started the
2008–09 season with a 5–0 cup win against
Hallescher FC on 9 August 2008. They were eventually eliminated in the second round by Schalke, for the second consecutive year. On 19 August 2009 Hecking resigned from his post after a disappointing 2008–09 season and a slow start to the 2009–10 season, including a loss to
Eintracht Trier in the first round of the cup. Hecking's final match was a 1–1 draw against Mainz.
1. FC Nürnberg (2009–2012) On 22 December 2009, he was named as the new manager of
1. FC Nürnberg, replacing
Michael Oenning. His first match was a 1–0 loss to Schalke on 17 January 2010. Nürnberg finished in 16th place and went into the relegation playoff. Nürnberg won both legs of the relegation playoff against Augsburg. Nürnberg finished in sixth place in the league. They had finished one spot and 11 points behind Mainz for a
Europa League spot. They were eventually eliminated in the round of 16. Hecking used a clause in his contract to leave the club. His final match was a 1–1 draw against Werder Bremen on 16 December 2012. Nürnberg were in 14th place when Hecking left the club. Hecking finished with a record of 42 wins, 23 draws, and 47 losses in 112 matches.
VfL Wolfsburg (2012–2016) Hecking became manager of Wolfsburg on 22 December 2012. He made his debut on 19 January 2013 in a 2–0 win against Stuttgart. Wolfsburg finished the
season in 11th, only losing three times in the second half of the season, and also reaching the semi-final of the cup. In the
2013–14 season Wolfsburg again got to the semi-finals of the German Cup, this time losing to Borussia Dortmund. Wolfsburg finished the season in fifth place and won a spot in the
Europa League. Wolfsburg started the
2014–15 season with a 2–1 loss to Bayern Munich. However, in the reverse fixture, Wolfsburg won 4–1, their first game after the death of midfielder
Junior Malanda. This victory was the first time Bayern had conceded four goals in a league game since Wolfsburg beat them 5–1 in 2009 on the way to the
2008–09 Bundesliga title. In March 2015, in the Europa League, in the round of 16, Wolfsburg defeated
Inter Milan by a 3–1 score in the first leg and 2–1 in the second leg for a 5–2 aggregate score. Wolfsburg were eliminated by
Napoli. The second-place finish qualified Wolfsburg for the
Champions League. This was Hecking's first major trophy. Hecking was then voted
Football Manager of the Year for 2015, while Wolfsburg's star player
Kevin De Bruyne won the
Footballer of the Year award. Hecking was praised for developing De Bruyne and Wolfsburg's other key players
Bas Dost and
Ricardo Rodriguez. Wolfsburg started the
2015–16 season by defeating Bayern Munich in a shootout to win the
German Super Cup. In the Champions League, Wolfsburg won Group B, finishing two points above
PSV Eindhoven. Wolfsburg beat
Gent to reach the quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual winners
Real Madrid despite 'stunning' the Spanish side with a 2–0 win in the first leg. However, the team struggled in the Bundesliga, producing the second-worst away record in the league and missed out on European football, finishing only eighth. Wolfsburg sacked Hecking on 17 October 2016. Hecking's final match was a 1–0 loss to
RB Leipzig. Wolfsburg were in 14th place when Wolfsburg sacked Hecking. Hecking finished with a record of 81 wins, 41 draws, and 43 losses in 165 matches.
Borussia Mönchengladbach (2016–2019) On 21 December 2016, Hecking was appointed as the new head coach by
Borussia Mönchengladbach on a contract until 2019, with the short-term goal of ensuring the club's Bundesliga survival. Hecking led Gladbach to a famous comeback victory against
ACF Fiorentina in the
Europa League, but were then eliminated by Schalke, and also lost the semi-final of the
2016–17 DFB-Pokal to
Eintracht Frankfurt. The team finished 9th in both of Hecking's first two seasons at the
Borussia-Park. On 2 April 2019, Gladbach's sporting director
Max Eberl announced that Hecking's term would not be extended beyond the end of the 2018–19 season. His final game was a 2–0 loss to
Borussia Dortmund, which caused the club to drop outside the Champions League qualification places. Hecking finished with a record of 43 wins, 23 draws, and 32 losses.
Hamburger SV (2019–2020) On 29 May 2019, Hecking signed a one-year contract to be the new manager of
Hamburger SV, replacing
Hannes Wolf. He departed by mutual consent on 4 July 2020, after failing to achieve the target of promotion to the Bundesliga. The season ended with a 5–1 home loss to
SV Sandhausen, which was described as one of the lowest points in the club's history. He finished with a record of 14 wins, 13 draws, and nine losses.
Return to Nürnberg (2020–2024) After leaving Hamburg, Hecking returned to
1. FC Nürnberg, replacing
Robert Palikuča as sporting director. In February 2023, he took the head coaching spot on interim until the end of the 2022–23 season after firing
Markus Weinzierl. The club only secured survival in the
2. Bundesliga on the final day of the season, and some fans demanded that Hecking resign.
Cristian Fiél replaced Hecking as coach after the season, having served as Hecking's assistant while he was interim coach.
VfL Bochum (2024–2025) He was named head coach of
VfL Bochum in November 2024. In May 2025, the club relegated in 18th place to
2. Bundesliga. After only one win in five games of the
2025–26 season, Hecking was sacked from his position.
VfL Wolfsburg (2026–present) In March 2026, he returned to Wolfsburg as the head coach. ==Managerial statistics==