INTERVIEW – The president of the French Football Federation, Philippe Diallo, speaks to Figaro on the shutdown in 2026 of Didier Deschamps and answers the question of a possible successor named Zinédine Zidane.
What does this decision inspire you to Didier Deschamps even if you already knew about it?
Philippe DIALLO: I think it is both responsible and elegant from a coach who will have marked the history of the France team. Didier wants, at the end of his current contract, to turn a page – since he will have spent almost 14 or 15 years at the head of the French team (He was appointed in 2012 following Laurent Blanc ) – exceptional, with many titles. It’s done with a sense of responsibility, and a form of elegance too, because I think he’s doing it at a time when no one expects it, far enough from the matches we have in March against the Croatia, so as not to harm the French team, its players, and it is a new mark of its attachment to the Blues, to do it in this context.
When he announced his decision to you during the end-of-year holidays, which Didier Deschamps did you find in front of you?
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