Didier Deschamps

Didier Deschamps is the head coach of France at the 2026 FIFA World Cup — almost certainly his last as he has indicated he will step down after the tournament. Born in Bayonne on 15 October 1968, he is one of only three men in football history to have lifted the World Cup as both a captain and a coach.

As a defensive midfielder he was the spine of the 1998 World Cup-winning France and the Euro 2000 champions, also lifting the Champions League with Marseille in 1993 and Juventus in 1996. After retiring he managed Monaco (Champions League final 2004), Juventus and Marseille (Ligue 1 title 2010) before being appointed by the FFF in July 2012.

His France tenure is the most successful in Les Bleus' history: World Cup champions in 2018, runners-up in 2022, Euro 2016 finalists and Nations League winners in 2021. His pragmatic, counter-attacking blueprint has weathered the retirements of a generation while integrating Mbappé, Tchouameni and now a new attacking core around Désiré Doué.

France are in Group I with Senegal, Norway and Iraq, opening at MetLife Stadium on 16 June. Deschamps' challenge: deliver a second World Cup title in his final tournament and confirm France as the defining nation of the late 2010s and 2020s.