France head coach Didier Deschamps will bring his 14-year tenure with Les Bleus to an end following the team’s elimination from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The 57-year-old’s quest to become the first man to win the World Cup three times—once as a player and twice as a coach—ended after France suffered a 2-0 defeat to Spain in Tuesday’s semi-final.
Deschamps had announced in January 2025 that he would step down after the tournament. His final match in charge of the French national team will be the third-place playoff against the loser of the England versus Argentina semi-final in Miami on Saturday, July 18.
Speaking after the defeat, Deschamps said it was not the right moment to discuss his departure.
“It is not time to talk about the future. It is not important on a personal level whether I leave a competition in a semi-final or final,” he said.
“I am extremely happy and very proud of everything we have achieved to reach this stage and to win a World Cup. We took the French national team to the highest level.
“I have been fortunate to experience many great moments as both a player and a coach. Today is not one of those moments, but we must accept the result without forgetting everything we have accomplished together.”
Deschamps is one of only three individuals to have won the FIFA World Cup as both a player and a manager, alongside Brazil’s Mario Zagallo and Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer.
Appointed France manager after Euro 2012, Deschamps guided the national team to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup, runners-up finishes at Euro 2016 and the 2022 World Cup, the 2018 FIFA World Cup title, the Round of 16 at Euro 2020, and the semi-finals of Euro 2024.
As a player, he earned 103 caps for France between 1989 and 2000, captaining the team to victory at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000 before retiring from international football.
Former France captain and football legend Zinedine Zidane is widely expected to succeed Deschamps as head coach of the France men’s national team.