Zidane: I refused every job because I wanted to be France manager

New France head coach Zinedine Zidane has revealed he turned down multiple job opportunities during the last five years - because he only wanted to take charge of Les Bleus.

Zidane was announced as France's new head coach in a press conference on Monday morning after Didier Deschamps resigned from his position.

The World Cup-winning midfielder has not been in a job for five years since leaving his second stint as Real Madrid boss - and was linked to a number of top positions in world football, including Manchester United.

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"In the last four or five years, I had offers to join a club and I refused them all for the France national team," Zidane said in his first press conference as France boss. "This job is the only job I wanted to do after my career with Real Madrid.

"I've always seen the France national team in the view of a fan - but also as a future manager. That's the reason why I didn't take on a new club team.

"I told myself that the only thing I wanted to do after Real Madrid was the French national team. I kept myself away from those teams. I had great projects, and could have done them for two or three years.

"But since Deschamps' decision at the start of 2025 to step down after the next World Cup, the next day I was very animated to say I wanted to be his successor.

"So I met the president in February 2025 and it's led us to here."

'I know how to win' - but will Zidane follow Deschamps way of playing?

Zidane is set to follow a successful Deschamps era of the French national team.

During that 12-year stint, France won the World Cup in 2018 and the 2021 Nations League - while they were European Championships and World Cup runners-up in 2016 and 2022.

However, Zidane told the French Football Federation that he also knows how to win. During his time as Real Madrid manager, he won two La Liga titles as well as three consecutive Champions League trophies between 2016 and 2018.

Speaking about those discussions, French FA president Phillippe Diallo added: "I told him it's a huge honour and a big responsibility because the last few years have been stunning.

"We needed to find the person to give us confidence to drive us down the same path for what I hope is the years ahead.

"When I met with Zinedine in February 2025, after the announcement of Didier, he told me: 'Mr President, I know how to win'.

"When he said that, I knew he had the desire and the confidence to take charge of the team."

Speaking about moving on from Deschamps, Zidane said: "The team's run and style of play were magnificent. I was there in person and had a great time, just like the other fans. There are no complaints about how things went.

"Honestly, we're going to do things differently. Didier Deschamps is Didier Deschamps. Laurent Blanc was Laurent Blanc. Zizou is Zizou. I'm going to try to do what I know how to do.

"It's not a clean break, either. I want to maintain continuity so that the French team keeps winning."

'I wasn't twiddling my thumbs for five years'

Zidane also insisted he has no concerns about taking charge of a national team for the first time, adding that the France squad has enormous potential.

"There's no worry," Zidane said. "It's a completely different job from club coaching. It doesn't scare me.

"I'll have a balance between my personal life and the French national team. It suits me perfectly. It's a different kind of job, and I have no issues with that.

"I didn't sit around twiddling my thumbs for five years. I watched more matches than when I was coaching Real Madrid. I saw a huge number of them. I watched the French national team a lot, and there is great potential."