2026 World Cup: Deschamps, a bitter exit after 14 exceptional years

Didier Deschamps will not leave his role as coach of the French national team with a third world championship title, but this bittersweet exit will not overshadow 14 exceptional years at the helm of Les Bleus.

The 57-year-old coach will bid farewell to Les Bleus after the third-place match on Saturday in Miami against the loser of England-Argentina. Regardless of the outcome, he will forever be associated with France's second World Cup victory in 2018 and will have successfully revived a team that had been in dire straits after the 2010 World Cup fiasco and the infamous training strike in Knysna.

Taking the reins in 2012, he patiently rebuilt the French national team brick by brick, with consistent progress: a promising quarter-final appearance at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, a frustrating final at Euro 2016 on home soil, victory at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, before coming agonizingly close to a double in 2022 in Qatar. To this list must also be added a Nations League title won in 2021 and a semi-final appearance at Euro 2024. Incredible consistency at the pinnacle of international football.

The exit in the round of 16 at Euro 2021, on penalties against Switzerland, is thus the only real underperformance of the Deschamps era.

- Offensive armada -

While he had hoped to leave Les Bleus at the top, his fourth World Cup ended in the semi-finals against Spain (2-0), his nemesis, the only country against which he couldn't find a way to win. But he will have the consolation of having kept France among the elite nations for so many years.

During the North American World Cup, the pragmatic coach, a proponent of constant control, relied on an unparalleled attacking force with the magic trio of Mbappé-Dembélé-Olise and granted unusual freedom to his attackers.

Not wanting to be without his superstar Kylian Mbappé, his Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembélé, or his young talent Michael Olise, and stung by the criticism that followed the elimination against Spain (2-1) in the semi-final of Euro 2024 in Germany where the attacking display had been poor (4 goals scored in six matches including one penalty and two own goals), the boss of Les Bleus has rethought his organization.

Deschamps took the time to address what wasn't working and revitalized his squad, notably integrating six Olympic silver medalists from Paris 2024, with Olise leading the charge. This came at the cost of sacrificing team balance, an aspect he has very rarely compromised on throughout his coaching career, a true disciple of Aimé Jacquet, the manager of the 1998 World Cup champions.

- The most impressive track record -

"We can play with four attackers, if we have the ball, there's no problem. The objective is to create as many problems as possible for the opponent," he said on March 25.

"The French team is an attacking team. It has the ability to create opportunities. That's important. We will have to maintain this ability to put the opponent in difficulty and to score goals," he also stressed during the World Cup.

A natural candidate for the ultimate title, Deschamps will not add a third star to his record, but it remains the finest in French football.

His last campaign was also marked by the death of his mother the day after the 3-0 victory against Iraq in Philadelphia, a loss that forced him to leave the United States to attend the funeral in France. This event further strengthened the team's bond, as Adrien Rabiot affirmed the day before the semi-final.

"Off the field, things are working very well and I think that's a big part of this success. There are also things that have brought us closer together, for example the difficulties that the coach has also experienced, knowing that this is also his last competition at the head of the French team," he explained.

With the Deschamps era drawing to a close, all eyes are now on Zinédine Zidane. The French sporting icon, who became a highly successful coach with Real Madrid (winning three Champions League titles between 2016 and 2018), is expected to be appointed soon to take up the mantle and occupy the position he has long dreamed of. He will, however, bear the heavy responsibility of preserving the formidable legacy left by his illustrious predecessor.