France hires former soccer great Zinedine Zidane as men's national team coach

PARIS (AP) — Zinedine Zidane is France’s new coach, replacing Didier Deschamps at the helm of the team he led to glory as arguably its greatest ever player.

French Football Federation president Philippe Diallo announced Zidane’s appointment at the FFF headquarters in Paris on Tuesday, saying he has been given a 4-year contract.

“I’m excited,” Zidane said, clenching his fists. “The France team makes you dream,” he said. “We have extraordinary players, an extraordinary team.

“I’ve waited five years for this chance, so that’s why I’m a bit emotional,” said Zidane, adding that it was the happiest day of his career as coach.

His usually calm voice broke a little as he spoke more about what it meant to him.

“I’ve always watched this side as a fan and also as a future coach, I won’t hide it.” Zidane said. “That’s why I didn’t take a club side. I told myself that the only thing I wanted to do after Madrid was taking the France team.”

Diallo called the hiring of Zidane “an exceptional moment, exceptional because of the person sat next to me,” adding that Zidane “is one of the legends of French soccer.”

The 54-year-old Zidane has not coached since leaving Real Madrid in 2021.

“For me it’s a continuity, a dream,” Zidane said. “I had some offers during the five years I was away to take charge of a club but I turned them all down for the France team. It was the only thing I wanted to do.”

Zidane called it “an immense joy” to take charge of the team he starred for.

“I have so many emotions, I am ready for the challenge,” he said. “That's what motivates me.”

Zidane praised Deschamps won the 2018 World Cup and stepped down after the recent World Cup, where Les Bleus lost in the semifinals to Spain.

“Today I have the opportunity to be in charge of this team and I will give everything so that this team can win,” Zidane said. “I would also like to congratulate DD (Deschamps) for these remarkable years.”

Diallo said he met Zidane for talks in February, 2025 after Deschamps said he would stand down after the 2026 World Cup. Zidane said France would play differently to how it did under Deschamps.

“What motivates me is the game, I was a No. 10, I like goals,” Zidane said. “I was a leader on the field and now I want to be a leader by experience.”

His first game as France coach will be away to Turkey in the Nations League on Sept. 25, followed by a match in Belgium three days later.

Home fans need to wait until Oct. 2 for a glimpse of Zidane at Stade de France, when France plays Italy, 20 years after he was sent off against Italy in the 2006 World Cup final for headbutting Italy defender Marco Materazzi in the chest.

“I’ve noted all of the four matches to come, they're in my head,” Zidane said. “Italy is special, because I played there, because I know people, because I speak Italian. All of those things.”

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, smiles during a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, attends a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Zinedine Zidane, newly appointed coach of the France national soccer team, smiles during a media conference at the headquarters of French Football Federation headquarters in Paris, Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

France head coach Didier Deschamps stands by the bench during the World Cup third-place playoff soccer match between France and England in Miami Gardens, Fla., Saturday, July 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

FILE - Zinedine Zidane of France displays the World Cup after the final of the soccer World Cup 98 between Brazil and France at the Stade de France in Saint Denis, north of Paris, Sunday, July 12, 1998. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle, file)

FILE - Former French player Zinedine Zidane, left, embraces Kylian Mbappe of France, as he is being presented to fans as a new Real Madrid player in Madrid, July 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas, File)

BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Confirmed cases in Congo's ongoing Ebola outbreak have reached 3,262, its Ministry of Health said in an overnight update, nearly the same as the 2018-2020 outbreak that is the largest ever recorded in the country.

Data from the Congolese health ministry showed that 1,437 patients have died out of the 3,262 cases, in what officials have said is the fastest Ebola outbreak on record, concentrated in the eastern Ituri province.

The 2018-2020 outbreak that was recorded in Congo and neighboring Uganda lasted roughly two years, with more than 3,400 reported cases, including over 2,200 deaths, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

Only the 2014-2016 outbreak across West Africa, considered the worst in history, had a higher toll with 28,000 cases and more than 11,000 deaths.

The speed of transmission in the current outbreak comes amid concerns from residents that many communities in the affected provinces are either unreachable or have been abandoned by responders in recent days over safety concerns amid attacks from angry residents and rebels.

“The fact that, in just 10 weeks, we have reached nearly the same number of cases recorded over an almost two-year outbreak is alarming and should stop us in our tracks," Onesphore Bangenza, Mercy Corps response team lead in Bunia, Ituri's capital, said Tuesday.

“There is no doubt that the virus is moving faster than we can contain it,” Bangenza added.

The ongoing outbreak, which was declared on May 15, is unlike most previous Ebola outbreaks because the Bundibugyo virus responsible for it has no approved vaccines or treatments.

Efforts to slow the transmission have been challenged by rebel violence in eastern Congo as well as health workers striking to protest the nonpayment of their wages.

The outbreak continues to spread faster than health officials can track despite an expanding response. A key challenge is that patient zero has yet to be identified in the outbreak while displacement from armed conflict and illegal mining in the region have made it difficult to trace thousands who have come in contact with infected individuals.

Despite distrust between communities and health workers mostly seen at the early stages of the outbreak, signs of progress have emerged.

“We can never again wage war against the Ebola teams. We have lost members of our families. As a community, we have a vested interest in fighting Ebola to return to normal life,” said Fabrice Mumbesa, a resident of Mongbwalu, a mining town at the center of the outbreak where residents previously burned down several treatment centers.

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McMakin reported from Dakar, Senegal

A health worker, wearing protective gear, stands outside the Ebola Treatment Center at the Bunia General Hospital in Ituri, Congo, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dirole Lotsima Dieudonne)

Rubble is set on fire as health and frontline workers protest at the Elikya Ebola Treatment Center in Bunia, Congo, on Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)

Rubble set on fire as health and frontline workers protest at the Elikya Ebola Treatment Center in Bunia, Congo, on Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Constant Same Bagalwa)