From 1952 till 1956, Schön was the coach of the then independent Saarland. After the reunification with Germany in 1956 he became assistant coach to Sepp Herberger in the national team. He is best known as coach of the German football national team from 1964 - 1978. During his 14 years as national coach he reached 87 victories, 30 draws and 22 defeats in 139 matches.