The future of the France team is taking shape behind the scenes. Didier Deschamps will leave his post after the 2026 World Cup, after fourteen years of reign marked by a world title and two finals. Zinedine Zidane waits his turn. His desire to lead the Blues is no longer a secret, he has said it publicly on several occasions. Everything seems in place for the former Real Madrid playmaker to take charge. However, no official announcement. Why such silence? A surprising hypothesis emerged on Canal+, and it points directly to Didier Deschamps.
Relations still tense between Zidane and Deschamps
According to Paul Tchoukriel, guest journalist on the channel, the current coach would have a say in the timing of the announcement. And he would like to delay it. Not out of animosity, but out of strategy. Deschamps fears that making Zidane official too early could disrupt his group a few months before the competition. “It’s normal that he has a say in this. It’s his feelings, he’s the one who knows the players,” explained the journalist. A way to keep control of communication and preserve the concentration of the Blues.
Tchoukriel goes further by evoking the nature of the relationship between Deschamps and Zidane.
“I don’t know if their relationship is idyllic. When we started to hear the name of Zinedine Zidane, I don't remember Deschamps mentioning his name. » A polite way of suggesting that the two French legends may not be on the same wavelength. Deschamps would therefore have an interest in controlling the calendar to avoid any interference in his final chapter with the Blues.
Zidane waits, Deschamps procrastinates: behind the scenes of a succession
A future already tied up, but on hold
For many observers, everything has already been decided. Zidane will be the next coach, it's a question of time. But the French Football Federation remains silent, and this wait fuels speculation. The FFF would have agreed to postpone the announcement at the request of Deschamps, to maintain the cohesion of the group before the World Cup. An understandable logic, but which places Zidane in an uncomfortable waiting position.
Zinedine Zidane is patient. Discreet, confident, he knows that his time will come. But this situation reveals a truth of modern football: even after his departure, Deschamps maintains control over the Blues. It's the power game. And for now, he's the one who decides when to pass the baton.
