Zidane wants to coach France as he eyes managerial return

Zinedine Zidane says he will "definitely" return to coaching and wants to coach the France national team.

Zidane has not been involved in professional football since leaving Real Madrid at the end of the 2020-21 season.

During his time in Madrid, he led the club to three consecutive Champions League victories between 2016 and 2018, also lifting two UEFA Super Cups, two FIFA Club World Cups and two LaLiga titles.

He left Madrid in 2018 but returned a year later for a second spell.

Zidane won 172 of his 263 games in all competitions across both spells at Madrid, with his side scoring 596 goals during that time.

Didier Deschamps is leaving his role as France's head coach following the 2026 World Cup, with his successor still to be named, and the former Madrid and Juventus midfielder is among the favourites to replace him in the dugout.

Zidane has turned down other roles in the last four years, including a position as the United States head coach and at Bayern Munich, but while he is eager to be a coach again, he is not yet sure where his next job will be.

"I will definitely return," Zidane said at the Festival dello Sport.

And when asked if Juventus could ever be a possible option for his coaching return, he replied: "I don't know.

"It hasn't happened in the past; I made other choices. Juve is always close to my heart. They gave me so much when I first got there.

"In terms of the future, I don't know. My feeling is that I want to be able to coach the national team in the future, even though I don't mean right now. I would like to one day, but we'll see."