Football: Zidane named France head coach after Deschamps steps aside

Zidane takes the France job

It finally happened. Zinedine Zidane is the new head coach of the France national team, the French Football Federation confirmed on Tuesday. The 1998 World Cup winner replaces his old team-mate Didier Deschamps, in charge since 2012.

Deschamps hands over a heavy legacy. A world title in 2018, a final lost in 2022, and a fourth-place finish at the 2026 World Cup that closed the book on his fourteen-year run.

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Continuity over a clean break

Zidane has wanted this for years, and never bothered hiding it. Picking one 1998 champion to follow another tells you exactly where the federation’s head is at. They went with a face the dressing room already trusts instead of tearing everything up.

Two questions hang over the appointment. Who joins his staff? And how does he want a squad built in the Deschamps mould to actually play?

Next up: the first camp

Zidane has to move fast. A camp schedule to lock in, a first squad list to sketch out before he takes charge for real.

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