Didier Deschamps’ era as the head coach of the France national football team is over. The man who led Les Bleus for over a decade, capturing a World Cup title along the way, is stepping aside, with Zinedine Zidane reportedly lined up to take the reins.

The end of a historic run

Deschamps has held the France coaching job since July 2012. He led France to win the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and guided them to the final again in 2022 in Qatar, where they fell to Argentina.

In January 2025, Deschamps confirmed he would not extend his contract beyond the 2026 World Cup. By March 2026, reports surfaced that Zinedine Zidane, the former Real Madrid manager, had reached a verbal agreement with the French Football Federation (FFF) to take over once the tournament concludes.

France competed in the 2026 World Cup, hosted across North America, with Deschamps still at the helm. The transition was always designed to happen after the tournament, not during it.

Where crypto enters the pitch

Fan tokens have become a fixture in major football ecosystems. These tokens, typically issued on platforms like Socios, give holders voting rights on minor club decisions. Speculative trading of meme tokens linked to player performances has been observed during key matches.

Kylian Mbappe, France’s talismanic forward, sits at the center of much of this peripheral crypto activity. His performances generate media hype that can translate into short-term trading volume on associated tokens.

What this means for crypto investors

Fan tokens and sports meme coins tend to be narrative-driven assets that move on sentiment, media coverage, and tournament results. Fan tokens have historically underperformed broader crypto markets over longer time horizons.

There is also the NFT angle. Digital collectibles tied to Deschamps’ legacy, his 2018 triumph and the 2022 final, could see renewed interest around his departure.