A beautiful gesture after a death during the World Cup. A devastating time for a legend
France advanced to the 1/8 finals of the FIFA World Cup, comfortably defeating Sweden (3-0). It was a special match for the coach of the world runners-up, Didier Deschamps.
It is no secret that the French are one of the favorites to win this year’s World Cup. The team, which was world champion in 2018 and runner-up four years later, would again like to show the competition the power of the Tricolors. The head of this team is Didier Deschamps. A man who won the world title himself, while still a player, lifting the cup during the memorable event in 1998.
A beautiful gesture for the French coach. The death during the World Cup shocked France
Even before the start of the 2026 World Cup, it was known that after 14 years, Deschamps would say goodbye to the role of coach. The 57-year-old coach has achieved a lot as a player (he also won Euro 2000 with France), and now he is on the way to fighting for the full prize at the World Cup again.
Unfortunately, during the event, tragic news arrived about the death of the French coach’s mother. Deschamps left the tournament, flew to France for a few days, and the world runners-up team was led by his assistant in the last group match. France won strongly against Norway (4:1), and then added another success against Sweden. The Swedes had nothing to say against such a good team, deservedly losing 0:3.
Deschamps returned to the team. After the goal for the Tricolor team, team captain Kylian Mbappe made a beautiful gesture by running to his coach and thus providing support, so much needed in a difficult moment, for the legendary coach.
And a smile appeared on the French coach’s face.
In the 1/8 finals, the Tricolors will play against Paraguay. The South American team caused the biggest surprise of the tournament so far, eliminating the Germans from the tournament after winning a series of penalties.
World Cup 2026. Where and when to watch the greatest football World Cup in history?
From June 11 to July 19, the 23rd FIFA World Cup will be held on pitches in three countries – the United States, Mexico and Canada. An event that will certainly be unique, if only because of its format. For the first time in history, as many as 48 teams will take part in the main tournament.
The title from four years ago is defended by the Argentines. During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Messi and company defeated the French in the final, winning after a series of penalties (4:2). In the history of football World Cups, Brazil has the most titles – as many as five. Four victories in the history of the World Championships belong to the Italians and Germans. The Argentines won three times. More than once, the trophy for winning the World Cup was raised – twice – by the players of France and Uruguay.
The Polish national team was third twice at the World Championships, but those were the old days – we are talking about the events in 1974 and 1982. At the last World Cup, Poles managed to advance to the knockout phase, but were eliminated in the 1/8 finals by the French (1:3).
Matches of the 2026 World Cup can only be watched on Polish Television – on TVP Sport, TVP 1 and TVP 2 and on tvpsport.pl. Additionally, broadcasts will be available in the TVP Sport mobile application and smart TV.
