Alexander Hauser

Alexander Hauser (born 23 June 1984) is an Austrian football coach and former professional footballer who is an assistant coach at Premier League club Newcastle United.

As a player, he spent eight seasons with Wacker Innsbruck, where he was club captain and made 237 appearances in all competitions.

Playing career

Hauser began his career in his native Tyrol and spent part of his youth career with Rangers in Scotland. He returned to Austria to begin his senior career with SW Bregenz, where he played in the Austrian Bundesliga.

He subsequently played for Pasching, Schwanenstadt, Hartberg, Austria Kärnten and Wiener Neustadt before joining Wacker Innsbruck in August 2009. He continued working in Wacker's youth setup until 2016.

After leaving Wacker as a player in 2017, Hauser returned to his hometown club SK St. Johann, where he spent the 2017–18 season as an assistant coach. He later coached the club's under-18 team during the 2019–20 season.

Hauser and Koch subsequently remained assistant coaches following the appointment of Gerhard Struber. In October 2023, they jointly took charge of a league match against Austria Klagenfurt when Struber was absent through illness.

At the end of the 2023–24 season, Salzburg reorganised its coaching staff following the appointment of Pep Lijnders as head coach. Hauser and Koch were replaced as first-team assistant coaches by Onur Cinel and Vítor Matos.

Al-Ahli

In June 2024, Hauser agreed to join Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli as an assistant coach, reuniting with Matthias Jaissle. Hauser had previously worked under Jaissle at Liefering and Red Bull Salzburg.

In his first season at Al-Ahli, the club won the 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite, defeating Kawasaki Frontale 2–0 in the final in Jeddah. It was Al-Ahli's first Asian club championship, and Hauser became the first Austrian to win the competition.

Al-Ahli subsequently won the 2025 Saudi Super Cup. Hauser described his move to Saudi Arabia as the right decision and discussed his role as Jaissle's assistant in an interview with Kurier in September 2025.

In April 2026, Al-Ahli retained the AFC Champions League Elite, defeating FC Machida Zelvia 1–0 after extra time in the final. The victory gave Hauser his second consecutive Asian title as an assistant coach.

Newcastle United

In August 2026, Hauser left Al-Ahli following Jaissle's appointment as head coach of Premier League club Newcastle United, joining his coaching staff as an assistant coach.

The move continued Hauser's working relationship with Jaissle, having previously served as his assistant at Liefering, Red Bull Salzburg and Al-Ahli.

Honours

Player

Wiener Neustadt Austrian First League: 2008–09

Wacker Innsbruck Austrian First League: 2009–10

Assistant coach

Red Bull Salzburg Austrian Football Bundesliga: 2021–22, 2022–23 Austrian Cup: 2021–22

Al-Ahli AFC Champions League Elite: 2024–25, 2025–26 Saudi Super Cup: 2025