ZIDANE APPOINYED FRANCE HEAD COACH AFTER 2026 WORLD CUP

Zinedine Zidane has been appointed head coach of the France men’s national football team, the French Football Federation (FFF) announced on Tuesday.

The 54-year-old takes over from Didier Deschamps, who stepped down following the 2026 FIFA World Cup after leading France for 14 years.

Zidane’s appointment comes after France’s disappointing campaign at the tournament in North America. Widely regarded as one of the favourites, Les Bleus were eliminated by eventual champions Spain in the semi-finals before losing to England in the third-place playoff.

The former France captain returns to coaching for the first time since leaving Real Madrid in 2021, where he enjoyed one of the most successful managerial spells in modern football.

“I have often said there is nothing greater than the French national team. It is therefore a joy and obviously a great honor to become the coach of France. It is also a responsibility,” Zidane said in a statement released by the FFF.

“I want to thank President Philippe Diallo, the Executive Committee and the French Football Federation for their trust and salute the fourteen years of Didier and his staff. I also have a special thought today for all my teachers. Needless to say, I have a lot of ambition for the French team.”

As a player, Zidane is regarded as one of France’s greatest footballers. He inspired the country to its first FIFA World Cup title in 1998, scoring twice in the 3-0 victory over Brazil in the final, before helping France win the UEFA European Championship in 2000.

His international playing career ended in dramatic fashion when he was sent off during the 2006 World Cup final against Italy following his infamous headbutt on Marco Materazzi.

Zidane now aims to emulate Deschamps by winning the World Cup as both a player and a coach.

Speaking at his unveiling, Zidane said coaching the French national team had always been his ambition.

“It’s a continuation for me, a dream come true. Over the last four or five years, I’ve received offers to lead a club and I rejected them all for the France national team. It’s the only thing I’ve wanted to do,” he said.

Zidane brings an outstanding club coaching record to the role. During two spells in charge of Real Madrid, he guided the Spanish giants to three consecutive UEFA Champions League titles, two La Liga championships and two FIFA Club World Cup trophies.

His immediate challenge will be preparing France for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, with a squad featuring attacking stars including Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Michael Olise, Désiré Doué and Bradley Barcola.

“We’ll be doing things differently. Deschamps is Deschamps, Zidane is Zidane. I will do what I know how to do,” he said. “I guarantee continuity so that the French national team keeps winning.”

- Ariana News

IT THIS THE NEXT 'WAKA WAKA'? SHAKIRA WITH BURNA BOY TEASES NEW FIFA WORLD CUP SONG | VIDEO

Colombian singer Shakira performs during a free concert at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on May 2, 2026. — AFP pic

LOS ANGELES, May 8 — Colombian pop idol Shakira on Thursday teased the new official song for the 2026 World Cup, releasing a brief video of the track filmed at Brazil’s iconic Maracana Stadium.

The singer – who also created the 2010 World Cup anthem “Waka Waka” – announced the song, titled “Dai Dai” in a post on her Instagram account.

In the 67-second video, Shakira appears on the pitch at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, where she performed in a free concert at the city’s Copacabana Beach last Saturday before two million people.

Holding the “Trionda”, the official match ball of the 2026 World Cup, Shakira performed excerpts of the song in English, joined by dancers dressed in the colors of teams including the United States and Colombia.

The song was produced with Nigerian artist Burna Boy and is set for official release on May 14. The clip, also shared by the Fifa World Cup account, ends with the message: “We’re ready!”

Shakira has a long association with the World Cup, performing at the 2006 and 2014 World Cup finals in addition to producing “Waka Waka” for the 2010 tournament. — AFP

ADIDAS PAY TRIBUTE TO THE 2006 WORLD CUP BALL

 

WHY GERMANY'S 2006 WORLD CUP PATRIOTIC FERVOR IS UNLIKELY TO REPEAT IN 2024

AP Photo 

 BERLIN (AP) — When Germany hosted the 2006 World Cup, it unleashed an unexpected burst of national pride across the country. For many Germans, it was the first time they felt they could wave the flag unburdened by the country’s dark past.

As Germany gets ready to host another major soccer tournament, the European Championship, such scenes of patriotic fervor are hard to imagine happening again.

While the national team could yet coax reluctant Germans to celebrate, the country itself is going through difficult times politically, with a far-right surge making many uncomfortable about public displays of national pride.

AP Photo 

Even with Germany’s opening game on Friday against Scotland just days away, there are few German flags hanging from balconies or windows, few national colors on show.

“It’s not going to be like 2006, because we’ve moved on 18 years and there are conflicts everywhere,” said Stephan Uersfeld, a sports columnist for broadcaster NTV. “Conflicts within German society, conflicts within Europe. It hadn’t been the case in 2006.”

Germany was one of the countries where the far-right made significant gains in elections to the European Parliament on Sunday. Alternative for Germany, or AfD, came second.

In 2006, the country wasn’t as polarized. Germans still refer to the World Cup that year as a “Sommermärchen,” or summer fairy-tale.

It was the first time Germany hosted a major soccer tournament since reunification. The economy was recovering from a deep depression with unemployment at 12.6% in 2005 – the highest it’s ever been since the war – and new Chancellor Angela Merkel promised better times to come.

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She enthusiastically cheered along as a young Germany team coached by Jürgen Klinsmann defied expectations to reach the semifinals in a country where soccer is by far the most popular sport. The good weather also played its part. Germans watched on large screens in beer gardens, on the streets or among friends at home, then continued the parties in parks and clubs.

“It was just a great atmosphere,” Uersfeld said. “I think the entire country was proud to actually host a tournament and be such a great host. They couldn’t believe that people liked what they saw in Germany. You had people coming from all over the world.”

He said hosting a European Championship isn’t as big as hosting a World Cup.

It’s questionable if even a World Cup would generate a similar celebratory mood now as in 2006. There hasn’t been the same collective mass-displays of national pride in the country since, not even after Germany won the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Anxiety over the rise of AfD, which uses the German flag frequently in campaigning, and more extremist groups has put many Germans off from displaying national symbols.

“Nobody wants to be confused with the right-wing stuff,” said Axel Lischke, a sound engineer in Berlin.

He described himself as a fan of soccer, but not particularly of Germany, and said he would likely root for Scotland in the opening match on Friday.

“I would love to see German society treating everyone equally,” said Lischke, who suggested the image of the multicultural German national team is only a vision. He pointed to the treatment of former Germany international Mesut Özil after the team flopped at the 2018 World Cup.

Özil, who has Turkish roots, was made the scapegoat for Germany’s group-stage exit and a target for racist abuse. The president of the German soccer federation, DFB, at the time, Reinhard Grindel, later regretted not giving Özil more support.

AP Photo

The DFB has since positioned itself in direct opposition to the far-right, promoting inclusion and tolerance. It has launched campaigns against racism and discrimination.

“It’s part of our work,” DFB general secretary Heike Ullrich told The AP. “You cannot say that sport has no role in politics. And we know how strongly football can be used as a model to send out politically important messages.”

Just before Euro 2024, a TV documentary questioned the German national team’s role in fostering integration in a multicultural society.

Germany defender Jonathan Tah and former internationals Shkodran Mustafi and Gerald Asamoah talked about the racism and hostility they faced.

The program on public broadcaster ARD included a survey asking 1,304 participants if they would prefer more white players on the team. One in five replied they would.

Both Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann and midfielder Joshua Kimmich said they were shocked that the broadcaster would even ask such a question.

“When you consider that we are about to host a European Championship at home, it’s absurd to ask such a question when the aim is actually to unite the whole country,” Kimmich said. “It’s about achieving great things together. As a team, we’re trying to get everyone in Germany behind us.”

To what extent that will happen – even if it doesn’t reach 2006 levels – will become clear once Germany gets the tournament underway on Friday.

- CIARÁN FAHEY