From McKinsey to Football: How Christine Thoma is infusing people and corporate culture to amplify Eintracht Frankfurt’s legacy

At six o’clock, the grass at Deutsche Bank Park still glistens with dew and the sprinklers whisper in the chill. 

Christine Thoma finishes her steaming coffee and sets off on a slow jog around the stadium. 

About nine months ago, she walked away from McKinsey’s high-stakes consulting world to take on a fresh challenge: Director of People & Corporate Culture at Eintracht Frankfurt, tasked with weaving 125 years of tradition, 150,000 members, and staff into a single, synchronized heartbeat.

From the only girl on the pitch to director of People & Corporate Culture

Christine’s love of football began at age four, when she was the lone girl on a boys’ team in Hamburg. She quickly learned that standing out isn’t a liability, it can be an advantage. 

After studying business in Germany, London, and Paris, she landed a finance internship where her first major career pivot occurred.

On her last day, crunching numbers, her boss looked up and said, “In two years, I don’t want to see you here anymore.”

Shocked, she braced for criticism, only to see her smile and add,

“You’re smart and curious; you’ll be boxed in here. Go out and see the world.”

That moment opened the door to a McKinsey interview - and walking out of that office, Christine realized that what feels safe can actually be a ceiling you set for yourself.

Shaping her professional foundation at McKinsey

At her first McKinsey stint, Christine threw herself into case work and late-night strategy sessions. Whilst enjoying the diverse challenges, the craving for hands-on impact never disappeared. 

The opportunity came when she had the chance of becoming CEO associate at a German lottery company, one of Germany’s early e-commerce success stories.

After getting her teeth into various strategic and commercial challenges in Hamburg and London, and an increasing exposure to start-ups, she decided to take a job at a sports tech scale-up in Berlin.

This felt like going back to her early football roots, so she didn’t hesitate.

From Berlin's Startup grind to hitting reset

The startup world roared like an engine with no governor: by day she brainstormed product features with founders; by night she pored over user data and prototypes. 

She learned to floor the accelerator amid chaos—and to pivot sharply when necessary.

Then COVID hit like a snapped seatbelt, freezing product lines and shrinking teams overnight. 

Germany’s Kurzarbeit program gave her a rare pause; she swapped late-night emails for meditation, logged off before sunset, and finally heard the voice inside ask, 

“What truly matters?”

Back to consulting, tackling “People & Culture”

Soon after, McKinsey’s Leap team invited her back for McKinsey 2.0, this time as a manager leading digital ventures and organizational design. 

“Stepping into consulting at the level of manager doesn’t happen often,” 

she admits, 

“So you better be ready, and someone has to be crazy enough to trust you have got what it takes without having risen through the ranks in the traditional way.” 

From early mornings to late evenings, she crisscrossed between clients, teams, and leadership workshops. 

In one of many invaluable mentoring conversations, , her mentor gave her the metaphor of juggling balls.

She smiled and said,

“You are juggling four balls at the same time - - clients, team, leadership, process. We know how challenging this is and that you are bound to drop balls. This is just part of the system. Just make sure that the ball you drop is not the one made of glass” 

For Christine, this statement was extremely liberating, showing her that she was empowered to take calculated risk in a psychologically safe environment.

The call that connected all the dots

Three years later, one phone call changed everything: 

“Eintracht Frankfurt is looking for someone just like you. A life-long football fan and player with a passtion for people and cororate culture to help take it to the next level. Are you in?” 

Her mind raced through the risks: walking away from a hard-won reputation, rebuilding networks, facing fresh pressure - but every chapter of her journey had been leading to this moment. 

Two decades on the pitch taught her football field intensity; 

years of team-building showed her how to ignite talent; 

startup nights proved that culture and technology thrive when they move together. 

Yes, she leapt again.

When asked: how do you define Success?

She paused, then said:

“I used to measure success by who cracked the case first. As a manager, by who shone on stage.

Now, by health, people, and purpose—and by whether every pony‑tailed girl can look around the locker room or the boardroom and see herself leading one day.”

Finishing her final lap, Christine steps into the tunnel with one thing in hand: the trust that will guide her through whatever comes next.