Kylian Mbappé Shares Open Letter to French Fans After World Cup Exit

One week after the close of the 2026 World Cup, Kylian Mbappé, France's captain and top scorer of the tournament, published an open letter in several leading French newspapers. At 27 years old, Mbappé expressed his heartfelt thanks to his teammates, the departing coaching staff led by Didier Deschamps, and the fans who supported the team both in America and from home.

Mbappé admitted the pain of not bringing the trophy back to France was still fresh. Reflecting on the 2-0 semi-final loss to eventual champions Spain, he wrote, "We didn’t bring home the trophy. It hurts and it will continue to hurt for a while, I’m not going to lie to you about that." The disappointment lingered as Les Bleus finished with another defeat against England in the bronze medal match, which ended 6-4.

He acknowledged that while fans might have hoped for a better conclusion, the players gave their all. "We don’t always choose the end of the story, we choose what we put into it, and we put everything in it. This is something we are proud of."

A New Chapter Begins Under Zinédine Zidane

With Didier Deschamps stepping down, the French team looks ahead to a fresh start under Zinédine Zidane, expected to be named the new head coach soon. Mbappé emphasized that though this World Cup has ended, the journey continues. "There will be other games, other summer or winter evenings where we’ll all come together again in front of this same game, with the same desire intact. We’re not done playing together. Thank you for everything."