Zinedine Zidane To Replace Deschamps As France Manager After World Cup Exit

France football legend Zinedine Zidane is set to become the next head coach of the French national team after the 2026 FIFA World Cup, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

Romano reported that the French Football Federation plans to complete all formal paperwork with the former Real Madrid manager once France’s World Cup campaign officially ends.

He also revealed that Zidane has turned down every other coaching opportunity over the past eight months because he wanted only the France job.

The expected appointment comes as Didier Deschamps prepares to step down after overseeing France’s final matches at the tournament.

Naija News reports that France’s hopes of reaching another World Cup final ended on Tuesday, July 15, after a 2-0 defeat to Spain in the semi-finals. Speaking afterwards, Deschamps admitted his side failed to reach the standards required to overcome the European champions.

“We knew Spain defended very well and left us very little space. If the technical level were lower than in other games, we couldn’t win. If we weren’t at the required level technically and defensively, we couldn’t win,” Deschamps said.

The veteran coach insisted France were responsible for their own downfall despite acknowledging the occasion may have affected some of his players.

“In this context, players can make mistakes, and for some players, this was their first FIFA World Cup semi-final. We didn’t control the game the way we wanted to. We can’t negate everything we’ve done before, but we should have created more difficulties for Spain and been 100% physically and technically,” the veteran coach said.

Deschamps also questioned the performance of Salvadoran referee Iván Barton, particularly over the penalty awarded to Spain following Lucas Digne’s challenge on Lamine Yamal.

“The fourth official and fifth official were great, do you think the main referee was up to standard?” he said, while stopping short of criticising other decisions in detail.

Reflecting on his spell in charge, Deschamps expressed pride in what France achieved under his leadership but admitted the semi-final defeat left a bitter feeling.

He said, “I am happy with everything we have done with the national team; we won the FIFA World Cup and kept the team at the highest level. I have experienced very happy moments, but today I feel that I am not satisfied.”

France will now face the third-place play-off before Deschamps brings his long spell as national team coach to an end.

“This is the last step before a possible final, so we will play the third-place play-off. We will play that game, which will not erase what we have already achieved. But in this game, Spain showed more,” he said.