According to German outlet Bild, any return would only be sanctioned on Sancho's willingness to accept a heavily performance-based contract and to forgo a signing-on fee entirely — terms that would represent a significant financial climbdown for a player who commanded a club-record fee when he first left the club.
Dortmund's interest has also been described as a fallback option: the club are still trying to sign Köln forward Said El Mala first, and would likely only turn to Sancho in earnest if that pursuit fails.
The renewed speculation stems from injury rather than sentiment. New signing Giannis Konstantelias ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament during Saturday's 2-0 win over Hamburg, leaving head coach Niko Kovac short of attacking options and prompting Dortmund to reconsider a player they know well. No talks have yet taken place between the two parties.
Dortmund chief executive Carsten Cramer was asked directly about the prospect of a third Sancho spell.
"There's hardly a name that electrifies the people of Dortmund more than Jadon — that's just the way it is, that's been the case throughout the entire summer break," he told Sky90.
"Jadon hasn't done anything wrong, he's an impeccable young man. But we consistently handle it this way, we don't comment on any names at all."
Sancho has been a free agent since his Manchester United contract expired at the end of June, with the club opting against triggering an option to extend his deal by a further year as they looked to cut their losses on a player who never justified his £73m fee. He joined United from Dortmund in 2021 following a breakout four-year spell in which he made 137 appearances, scoring 50 goals and adding 64 assists.
A second, shorter stint on loan in the second half of the 2023-24 season added a further 21 appearances, three goals and three assists to those totals, taking his combined Dortmund numbers to 158 appearances, 53 goals and 67 assists.
His time in England was defined more by frustration than end product, most notably a public falling-out with then-United manager Erik ten Hag, and he endured similarly underwhelming loan spells at Chelsea and Aston Villa in the two seasons that followed. Remarkably, despite those struggles, Sancho reached the final of all three of Europe's major club competitions in as many seasons — with Dortmund, Chelsea and Villa respectively — a run of finals that sits oddly alongside his broader decline.
Borussia Dortmund's concerns now center on his fitness as much as his form, with question marks over whether he can quickly return to the level once expected of him after five years without sustained top-level performances.