(FILES) French midfielder and captain Zinedine Zidane runs with the ball during the World cup 2006 qualifying football match France vs. Cyprus, at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris on October 12, 2005. Zidane has been appointed as the new head coach of France national football team at the French Football Federation headquarters (FFF) in Paris on July 28, 2026. The former France playmaker, who won the 1998 World Cup and the 2000 European Championship as a player, has long been viewed as the leading candidate for the role and has been waiting for an opportunity to take charge of the national team for several years. (Photo by Eric Feferberg / AFP via Getty Images)