FC Augsburg, which finished the first half tied on points with cellar-dwellers Greuer Fürth, made the announcement in a statement posted on its website on Thursday.

"We are pleased that with Stefan Reuter we were able to attract a real professional to FC Augsburg," the club's president, Walther Seinsch said. "He said yes to FCA at short notice as he recognized the potential of the club."

The club's manager on the business side, Peter Bircks, pointed to Reuter's experience not only as a player, but also in management. Reuter worked in Borussia Dortmund's front office for a time, before serving as the sporting manager of second division side 1860 Munich from 2006 to 2009.

For his part, Reuter said he was excited about his new assignment at Augsburg because with the club's strong fan support, stadium, player roster and front office, it had the potential to become a "stable first division side."

Successful playing career

During his active career, Reuter played for a number of top-flight teams, including FC Nuremberg, Bayern Munich, Juventus Turin, and Borussia Dortmund. He was on five Bundesliga championship sides, and won the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund in 1997.

Reuter made 69 appearances for Germany as a player, helping the national team to its triumphs at the 1990 World Cup and Euro 96.

Reuter's appointment was the second Bundesliga job vacancy filled on Thursday, after Werder Bremen appointed ice hockey manager Thomas Eichin as their new sporting director.

It also comes just days after Augsburg had sacked Jürgen Rollmann, who had been the club’s sporting manager for a period of just 10 weeks. Management cited "irreconcilable differences" over the direction of the club as the reason for the decision.