France’s World Cup-winning coach Didier Deschamps to step down – with legend lined up to replace him
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Your support makes all the difference.Didier Deschamps, France’s longest serving national team coach, will not seek to renew his contract which expires in 2026, the French Football Federation (FFF) said on Tuesday.
Deschamps’ deal runs until after the next World Cup, for which France have yet to qualify.
The 56-year-old took over from fellow 1998 World Cup winner Laurent Blanc in 2012 and led Les Bleus to the World Cup title in 2018, two years after reaching the European Championship final on home soil.
The former France captain, one of only three people to win football’s most prestigious prize as a player and a coach, guided the national team to the World Cup final again in 2022, losing to Argentina on penalties after one of the best matches in the tournament’s history.
Earlier on Tuesday, French sports daily L’Equipe reported that Deschamps would make his announcement on Wednesday.
FFF president Philippe Diallo said Deschamps would not look to extend his stay after the World Cup, adding: “He will go until the end of his contract, i.e. 2026.”
Deschamps, who had won trophies with every club he managed before becoming France coach, also claimed the 2021 Nations League title with Les Bleus.
As a player, he won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000, both as captain.
A defensive midfielder nicknamed “the water carrier” by Eric Cantona, Deschamps was a winning machine and under his guidance as coach, France were at times boringly efficient and at others brilliant, beating Argentina 4-3 in the 2018 World Cup round of 16 and Croatia 4-2 in the final.
While Deschamps’ side has boasted the thrilling attacking talent of Kylian Mbappe, his teams have also shown grit and unmatched defensive ability when it mattered most.
It is uncertain who will succeed him but Zinedine Zidane is the heavy favourite for the job.
“It’s a wise decision. I didn’t send anything and I won’t send anything (to Zidane). But of course we all hope it will be him after 2026,” Christophe Dugarry, a former teammate of both Zidane and Deschamps and one of the latter’s most vocal critics, told RMC Radio.
“But it’s his choice and it will be linked to discussions with him. But it’s a wish that I have, a personal wish that I’ve had for a long time. I hope it will happen one day. I hope it will be in 2026, from the bottom of my heart.”
Reuters
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