Berlin: Yann-Benjamin Kugel has resigned as the German football team’s fitness coach, the German football federation DFB announced.

Kugel will not be a member of the current world champions’ support staff at the fixtures against Spain and Brazil in March, DFB said in a statement on Friday.

“I’ve been thinking a lot about my career future over the last few weeks. After some intense and fantastic years with the national team, I’d like a new challenge and utilise my experience and expertise otherwise in the world of football,” Kugel said in the statement.

Head coach Joachim Low said: “Benny Kugel was always a solid and reliable part of our team. The highlight of our work together was the World Cup in 2014.”