60 Fun Facts About Zinedine Zidane

By what nickname is Zinedine Zidane popularly known?

Fans chanted it in the Place de la Concorde even after his 2006 red card.

In which French city was Zidane born?

He grew up in La Castellane, a housing estate in the city's northern districts notorious for crime and unemployment.

Zidane's parents emigrated to France from which country?

They came from the Berber-speaking region of Kabylia in 1953, before the start of the Algerian War.

At which club did Zidane make his professional debut in 1989?

He went for a six-week stay and ended up spending four years there; the chairman gave him a car when he scored his first goal.

How was Zidane rewarded by his first club's chairman for scoring his first professional goal in 1991?

Alain Pedretti had promised him one the day he scored, and delivered at the players' party after the match.

Which English club reportedly turned Zidane down in 1996 for a modest fee, saying he was not good enough?

Blackburn's owner had already asked Kenny Dalglish, "Why do you want to sign Zidane when we have Tim Sherwood?"

Which Italian club did Zidane join in 1996?

He won two Serie A titles there and lost consecutive Champions League finals in 1997 and 1998.

Which forward did Zidane play just behind as the playmaker in Turin?

Del Piero later said Zidane "had a unique ability to be a great and to be a team player".

Who beat Zidane's Turin side 3-1 in the 1997 Champions League final?

A year later Juve lost the final again, 1-0 to Real Madrid.

What was the approximate world-record fee Real Madrid paid for Zidane in 2001?

Paid in instalments as 150 billion lire, it stood as the record for eight years until Real bought Cristiano Ronaldo.

Zidane's famous 2002 Champions League final winner was a volley against which club?

He struck it with his weaker left foot from the edge of the box in a 2-1 win at Hampden Park.

How did Zidane strike his 2002 Champions League final volley?

One writer described it as "Bruce Lee in slow motion while kung-fu chaos reigned around".

How many times was Zidane named FIFA World Player of the Year?

The awards came in 1998, 2000 and 2003, a feat matched only by Ronaldo, Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

In which year did Zidane win the Ballon d'Or?

It came the same year he won the World Cup on home soil and the Legion of Honour.

How many goals did Zidane score in the 1998 World Cup final against Brazil?

Both were headers from corners, taken by Emmanuel Petit and Youri Djorkaeff; Petit added a third in stoppage time.

Zidane's 1998 World Cup red card, the first for a Frenchman at a finals, came against which team?

The stamp on Fuad Anwar cost him the round-of-16 game; he returned to score the first penalty in the shoot-out against Italy.

How did Zidane score the golden goal that beat Portugal in the Euro 2000 semi-final?

He also curled in a free kick against Spain in the quarter-final and was named Player of the Tournament.

After Euro 2000, France was the first team to hold both the World Cup and Euros since which side?

Zidane himself believes the tournament was the peak of his career.

What kept Zidane out of France's first two matches at the 2002 World Cup?

France went out in the group stage without scoring, the worst showing by a defending champion in the tournament's history.

Which team knocked France out of Euro 2004, prompting Zidane's first retirement?

The surprise 1-0 loss came against the eventual champions.

Which France coach persuaded Zidane to come out of international retirement in 2005?

He returned alongside Thuram and Makélélé and was immediately reinstated as captain.

How did Zidane score France's goal in the 2006 World Cup final?

The chip struck the crossbar and bounced just over the line, making him only the fourth player to score in two World Cup finals.

Which Italian defender did Zidane headbutt in the 2006 World Cup final?

It later emerged the defender had insulted Zidane's sister; Zidane said he would "rather die than apologize".

In which city was the 2006 World Cup final played?

Italy won the shoot-out 5-3 after Zidane's 110th-minute dismissal.

What did Zidane win the day after the 2006 World Cup final, despite his red card?

Pep Guardiola wrote that Zidane exerted so much influence that "France are never disorganised".

How many red cards did Zidane receive in his career, by his own count?

He said twelve were the result of provocation, adding, "my passion, temper and blood made me react".

What punishment did FIFA give the already-retired Zidane for the 2006 headbutt?

A three-match suspension would have been meaningless, so he served the ban through one of FIFA's humanitarian projects.

Which Cameroonian is the only other player sent off at two separate World Cup tournaments?

Zidane also tied Cafu's record for most cards received in World Cup matches, with six.

How many caps did Zidane win for France?

He retired as the fourth-most capped Frenchman, reaching 100 against Mexico in May 2006.

Zidane scored twice on his France debut in 1994 to rescue a 2-2 draw against which team?

He came on as a substitute with France 2-0 down; a Cantona suspension soon opened up the playmaker role for him.

Which country's successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup did Zidane serve as ambassador for?

He called the result "a victory for the Arab world".

Which of the club's sides did Zidane coach before taking over the senior team at the Bernabéu?

He was reported to the Spanish coaching authorities in 2014 for managing without the required badges.

Whom did Zidane replace as Real Madrid head coach in January 2016?

His first match was a 5-0 win over Deportivo La Coruña five days later.

How many consecutive Champions League titles did Zidane win as Real Madrid coach?

The 2016, 2017 and 2018 wins made him the first coach to lift the trophy in three straight seasons.

Which club did Zidane's side beat on penalties in the 2016 Champions League final, his first as coach?

The win, "La Undécima", made him the seventh man to win the European Cup as both player and coach.

Which Zidane substitute scored twice in the 2018 Champions League final win over Liverpool?

He turned a 1-1 game into a 3-1 win; Zidane was also praised for his substitutions against PSG that season.

In which year was Zidane named The Best FIFA Men's Coach?

That season Real also won the Super Cup, Supercopa and Club World Cup, giving him as many trophies as games lost.

How many La Liga titles did Zidane win as Real Madrid coach across his two spells?

The 2017 title was the club's first in five years; the 2020 title came after ten straight wins following the COVID break.

Which national team was Zidane approached to coach after the 2022 World Cup, an offer he declined?

He later said coaching France was the only job he wanted.

Whom did Zidane succeed as head coach of France in 2026?

He was unveiled on 28 July 2026, with his contract taking effect on 1 September.

How many sons does Zidane have, all of whom came through Real Madrid's academy?

Enzo, Luca, Théo and Elyaz all became professional footballers.

Which band scored the 2005 documentary Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait?

Filmmakers Philippe Parreno and Douglas Gordon followed only Zidane for the entire 90 minutes.

In the 2008 film Asterix at the Olympic Games, Zidane cameos as an Egyptian with what punning name?

It plays on "numéro dix", number 10, his squad number for France.

Which Argentine's play at the 1986 World Cup left an "indelible mark" on the 14-year-old Zidane?

Zidane said Maradona "was on another level"; his boyhood idols also included Enzo Francescoli and Jean-Pierre Papin.

What is the name of Zidane's signature pirouette move?

Sid Lowe called him "football's answer to the Bolshoi Ballet".

Zidane and which Brazilian striker conceived the UN's annual Match Against Poverty?

Zidane has been a UN Goodwill Ambassador since 2001.

Zidane's first trophy, the 1995 Intertoto Cup with Bordeaux, came after beating which German club?

At Bordeaux he formed a midfield partnership with Bixente Lizarazu and Christophe Dugarry that later anchored France.

Which club beat Zidane's Bordeaux in the 1995-96 UEFA Cup final?

That European run put Zidane in the shop window, and he left for Juventus the following summer.

La Castellane, the Marseille neighbourhood where Zidane grew up, lies in which arrondissement?

He first played football there aged five on the Place Tartane, an 80-by-12-yard plaza at the heart of the housing complex.

Zidane's parents came from Aguemoune, a village in which Berber-speaking region of Algeria?

They arrived before the Algerian War began and settled first in the Paris districts of Barbès and Saint-Denis.

Zidane's two headers in the 1998 World Cup final came from corners taken by Emmanuel Petit and whom?

France led 2-0 at half-time and Petit added a third late on to finish off the favourites, Brazil.

Juventus lost the 1998 Champions League final 1-0 to which club, Zidane's future employer?

It was Juventus's third straight final, and Zidane won the Ballon d'Or later that year regardless.

Zidane scored the only hat-trick of his career in January 2006 against which club?

It came in a 4-2 win during his final, trophyless season at Real Madrid.

How many cameras were used to film Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait during a single match?

Filmmakers Philippe Parreno and Douglas Gordon followed him alone for the whole game, with Mogwai providing the soundtrack.

Which Liverpool and Celtic legend managed Zidane's Rest of the World side at Soccer Aid 2010?

Zidane lined up alongside Luís Figo and Henrik Larsson against an England side.

Shakira's 2010 'Waka Waka' video includes footage of Zidane celebrating what?

The official 2010 World Cup song mixed archive clips of past tournaments with Shakira's performance.

Zidane toured Bangladesh in November 2006 as the guest of which Nobel Peace Prize winner?

The same year he visited his parents' Algerian birthplace and was received by President Bouteflika.

In December 2016, Zidane's side set a Bernabéu club record by going how many matches unbeaten?

The run came in his first full season in charge, which had opened with a UEFA Super Cup win over Sevilla.

Which Cannes coach encouraged the hot-headed young Zidane to channel his anger into his game?

Zidane spent his first weeks at the club on cleaning duty as punishment for punching an opponent who mocked his background.

Zidane's stoppage-time free kick and penalty at Euro 2004 beat which team 2-1?

France topped the group but were then knocked out by eventual champions Greece.