1. FC Union Berlin's Director for Professional Football Oliver Ruhnert has agreed a contract extension at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.

The 48-year-oold took over the first-team football department at Union at the start of the 2018/19 season, leading the areas around coaching, scouting and squad planning. His work helped secure Union's first-ever promotion to the Bundesliga last year, and since then, the Köpenick club have held their own in the top division with 23 points from 19 games.

"I'm looking forward to continuing our work because the management of our first-team players department with Oliver Ruhnert as Director for Professional Football and Urs Fischer as Coach has both done a very successful job. The sporting development of 1. FC Union Berlin since summer 2018 is also due to the work of Oliver Ruhnert, who, together with Urs Fischer and the entire coaching and functional team, has succeeded in exploiting the economic opportunities of 1. FC Union Berlin, putting together an ambitious team and exploiting its potential," said Dirk Zinger, the club's president.

"The last two years have gone by in a flash and it makes me proud to have played my part in the historic success of the club. The support of the entire club and the trustful cooperation with the presidency contribute to the fact that I can say with justification: I can identify with the work for Union"," added Ruhnert. "For me it was also clear that our common path is not yet over. We have clear goals for the future and I look forward to continuing to work towards them in the future."