On the 4th of October 2011, Koller was declared as the new coach of the Austrian National Team (ÖFB). It was announced that he signed a contract until December 2013. After his nomination, there was heavy criticism against him because he was from abroad. During the long history of the team, he is the third coach who was not from Austria. He took over on the 1st of November. His first match as new coach was a friendly match versus Ukraine which the Austrian team lost.