French football boss Didier Deschamps on Thursday night anointed Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé as captain of the France squad for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Deschamps, who will leave his post as head coach after the tournament, revealed the 26 players headed to the tournament during the evening news on French broadcaster TF1.
Mbappé, 27, will lead a group which includes his Madrid teammate Aurélien Tchouaméni as well as Paris Saint-Germain stars Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Bradley Barcola and Warren Zaïre-Emery.
Bayern Munich's Michael Olise, Inter Milan's Marcus Thuram and Monaco's rising star Maghnes Akliouche join Mbappé in the front line, along with surprise choice Jean-Philippe Mateta from the English Premier League outfit Crystal Palace.
"He’s a player we’ve been tracking all season," Deschamps told presenter Gilles Bouleau. "Mateta also had the opportunity to join us on our recent tour of the United States where he performed well. What he did there opened up the possibility for him to return to the team for this World Cup."
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Camavinga misses out
Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga was one of the notable absences from the squad.
He featured at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, just over two years after becoming the second youngest player to make his debut for the French national team at the age of 17 years and 303 days.
"It's a tough situation," said Deschamps. "Eduardo is coming off a difficult season in Spain where he didn't get much playing time.
"He's also had some injuries. It's true that he became part of the France team very early but he's still a young player. But I understand and I can imagine how hugely disappointed he must be."
Victory as player and coach
In July 1998, Deschamps skippered France to its first World Cup crown following a 3-0 defeat of Brazil in the final at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis.
Twenty years later at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, his France team beat Croatia 4-2 to enable him to join the Brazilian Mario Zagallo and Germany's Franz Beckenbauer as the only men to lift the World Cup as a player and as a coach.
"I’ve had the privilege and the immense pride of winning the World Cup trophy twice," said Deschamps.
"So those are magical moments," added the 57-year-old. "You’re on top of the world. It’s always hard to fully realise it in the heat of the moment, but there’s nothing stronger than that.
"I had the privilege of serving the French national team for 11 years as a player, 14 years as a coach – that's 25 years professionally. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and to have experienced such moments is wonderful."
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France kick off their Group I campaign on 16 June against Senegal at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
On 22 June, they face Iraq at the Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia and they finish the group stages with a match against Norway at the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
In the first tournament to feature 48 teams, the top two from the 12 groups of four sides advance automatically to the last-32 knockout stages along with the eight best third-placed teams. The final will be played on 19 July at the MetLife Stadium.
Just before Deschamps outlined his choices, Fifa, which organises the World Cup, announced that the usual 15-minute pause between the two halves of the regulation 90 minutes would be extended to allow a half-time musical show for the first time at a World Cup final.
Madonna, Shakira and the K-pop band BTS will perform, said Fifa.
