Roger Lemerre relives Heysel emotion thanks to Zidane

Zinédine Zidane had fun during the press conference on the eve of the Belgium‑France match, when Fabien Barthez, his goalkeeping coach, reminded him that the King Baudouin Stadium was the venue of the Euro 2000 semi‑final where the French had beaten Portugal 2‑1 thanks to the golden goal.

Barthez's reminder immediately revived the moment when, in the 117th minute, the French number 10 converted the decisive penalty after Abel Xavier's handball on his goal line, thus securing the team's place in the tournament final.

Heysel, witness of another champion

This same stadium, located in Brussels and called Heysel until 1995, hosted Bixente Lizarazu, another 1998 World Cup and 2000 European champion, now a TF1 commentator and long‑time friend of Zidane since their years in Bordeaux.

At halftime of the Belgium‑France match, Lizarazu warmly greeted Roger Lemerre, the manager who had led France to the European triumph in 2000, stating: “And the immense pleasure of seeing our coach Roger Lemerre in this stadium,” wrote the Basque.

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Roger Lemerre’s exceptional career

The former coach was already present in October 2024 for a meeting between the two neighboring countries; the 85‑year‑old retiree, settled in Brussels with his family, thus reconnected with the venue that has witnessed so many French successes.

For context, Lemerre started as an assistant to Aimé Jacquet at Euro 1996 and the 1998 World Cup, before being promoted to manager and winning Euro 2000 in Rotterdam, where David Trezeguet scored the golden goal against Italy (2‑1).

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He then led Tunisia to the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations triumph, becoming the only manager to achieve that double, before heading the French disaster at the 2022 World Cup in South Korea.