An era-defining process, long described as football's "worst-kept secret," has reached its conclusion. The French Football Federation (FFF) has officially announced that a press conference will be held on Tuesday at 11am at the federation's headquarters. There is no more doubt: the name of the France national team's new head coach will be confirmed by then.
The formal side of the process has also become clear. Fabrizio Romano announced on Tuesday evening that Zinedine Zidane had officially signed a contract to manage France until the summer of 2030; the 54-year-old legend will succeed Didier Deschamps, who had been at the helm of the national team for 14 years.
The start date for his tenure is also known. According to an earlier report from L'Équipe, Zidane is expected to officially take charge on September 1, with his first match set to come away to Turkey in the Nations League, before hosting Italy at the Stade de France on October 2. According to Le Parisien, Zidane had already begun assembling his coaching staff behind the scenes together with his long-time assistant David Bettoni.
The background to the process has also been detailed. FFF president Philippe Diallo held a series of meetings with Zidane in recent weeks to finalise the sporting project and determine the structure of the new coaching staff; the federation reportedly wanted to hold a special ceremony to honour Deschamps' 14-year tenure, but the veteran coach showed little appetite for such a tribute.
Deschamps' farewell tournament did not bring the expected success. The French coach ended his tenure by finishing fourth at the 2026 World Cup, losing 2-0 to Spain in the semi-final and suffering a dramatic 6-4 defeat to England in the third-place match.
The task ahead of Zidane is also substantial. His first major tournament is expected to be Euro 2028; upon taking charge, he will inherit a talented squad featuring names such as Kylian Mbappe, William Saliba, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembele.
Image: World Soccer Talk
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