Deschamps' record 26th World Cup match eclipses German legend

Didier Deschamps created a Record on Tuesday by managing his 26th WK‑wedstrijd as France’s head coach, surpassing the previous high held by Helmut Schön. The achievement also makes him the Dutch‑born "Nederlander" with the most World Cup matches for a foreign side. The 57‑year‑old Fransman reached the semi‑final against Spain and thereby passed Helmut Schön, who had overseen 25 matches for West‑Germany across four tournaments from 1966 to 1978. AFPDidier captured the moment as Deschamps entered the historic milestone. Deschamps was the captain of Les Bleus when they won the 1998 World Cup and became head coach in 2012. Under his guidance France reached the quarter‑finals in 2014, lifted the trophy in 2018 and contested the final in 2022. He will coach only one more game in this edition, either the final on Sunday or the third‑place match on Saturday, depending on the outcome of the semi‑final.

Scorching Dallas heat tests Mbappé as France eye World Cup semi‑final

Deschamps missed the group‑stage clash with Norway because he travelled to France for his mother’s funeral; the official FIFA‑wedstrijdstatistieken still list him as coach, while Assistent Guy Stéphan took charge on the day. The match is recorded as Noorwegen in the tournament logs. After fourteen years at the helm, Deschamps announced he will step down at the end of the World Cup, confirming his resignation plan before the tournament concludes. The list of coaches with the most World Cup appearances now reads: Didier Deschamps – 262, Helmut Schön – 253, Carlos Alberto Parreira – 234, Luiz Felipe Scolari – 215, Mário Zagallo – 20, Óscar Tabárez – 20, Bora Milutinovic – 208, Zlatko Dalic – 18, Enzo Bearzot – 18, Sepp Herberger – 18, Guus Hiddink – 18. The record also notes Google‑favorietDeschamps among the elite.

Mbappé declared fit for Tuesday semi as Deschamps backs France

Guus Hiddink remains the Nederlands coach with the highest tally, having led the Dutch side seven times, Zuid‑Korea seven times and Australië four times for a total of eighteen WK‑matches. He is followed by Louis van Gaal with twelve matches for Oranje and Dick Advocaat with three matches for Curaçao, giving Advocaat eight WK‑duels overall. Among Dutch coaches the ranking is: Guus Hiddink – 182, Louis van Gaal – 123, Dick Advocaat – 84, Rinus Michels – 7, Bert van Marwijk – 7, Ernst Happel – 7, Leo Beenhakker – 78, Marco van Basten – 4, Ronald Koeman – 4. De, Deze, OOK, WK‑video and Les provide further context, while the Bleus’ legacy continues to be analysed by Carlos, Luiz, Mário, Zlatko, Dick, Rinus and Marco.