France unveil bolder national team crest as FFF launches new visual identity

The French Football Federation (FFF) has unveiled a redesigned crest and full visual identity for its national teams, centred on a reimagined rooster described as “more daring and striking” and embodying a “victorious spirit”.

The launch comes just 24 hours after Zinedine Zidane was appointed head coach of the France national team, although the FFF presented the rebrand as part of a longer-term move to modernise its image rather than a direct response to the managerial change.

In a statement on its website, the FFF said the new identity had been built around the traditional colours of French national teams – blue, white, red and gold – and enhanced with new shades of blue and pale yellow.

According to the federation, the updated look is designed to “modernise the current visual identity, adapt it more effectively to digital, marketing and event uses, and provide a shared graphic framework for all national teams”.

The FFF added that a key objective was to bring the federation’s crest closer to the rooster emblem that appears on the France shirts, “to provide greater clarity and unity across all forms of expression”.

Reimagined rooster at the heart of the redesign

At the centre of the overhaul is a newly drawn rooster, which the FFF describes as more assertive and visually impactful than its predecessor.

“The essence of this new identity lies in a redesigned rooster, bolder and more present, carrying a victorious spirit,” the statement said.

A long-standing symbol of French football, the rooster illustration draws inspiration from the badges that have represented the federation and its national sides for more than a century, while adopting a more contemporary graphic style.

The FFF has also chosen to display the word “France” prominently alongside the new rooster, strengthening the visual link between the emblem and the country it represents.

The federation highlighted a visual timeline, showing the evolution of France’s national team crests in chronological order up to 2024, ahead of this latest update.

Why the rooster represents France

The rooster has deep historical roots as a French symbol. It was used by the kings of France as an emblem of courage and boldness, before being adopted during the French Revolution as a sign of the people and the state.

Today, the “coq gaulois” appears widely in French public life, including on postage stamps and at the entrance to the Elysee Palace.

In sport, the rooster features on the shirts of France’s football, rugby and handball teams, as well as on the kits worn by French Olympic athletes, reinforcing its status as a unifying national icon.

Zidane era set to begin in Nations League

The crest’s unveiling coincides with the start of a new chapter for the men’s national team under Zidane.

The former France captain will take charge of his first match as head coach away to Turkey in late September, in the 2026-2027 UEFA Nations League.

Zidane succeeds Didier Deschamps, who oversaw his final game in charge only days ago – a third-place play-off defeat by England at the World Cup.

Deschamps’ departure and Zidane’s arrival mark a significant shift in the technical leadership of the national side, while the new visual identity signals a parallel change in how French football presents itself on and off the pitch.