Luca Zidane Leads Algeria Push as France Goalkeeper Reaches World Cup
Luca Zidane, the France goalkeeper born in France and raised mostly in Spain, chose last autumn to represent Algeria and is now set to play at a World Cup. The Granada keeper said the decision was his, and it sends him into Tuesday’s match against Argentina with a place in Algeria’s international picture secured.
Luca Zidane Chooses Algeria
Zidane said the choice was personal, even after talking it through at home. "The final decision was mine, but I spoke with my family, my parents, my brothers, my grandfather." He also pointed to the family link that helped shape the move: his paternal grandparents were born in Algeria.
"It’s an honour to play for Algeria," he said, adding, "We’ve lived in an Algerian culture since we were small." For a player who spent most of his life in Spain and plays for Granada in Spain’s second division, the switch tied his club career to a national team choice that had been building for years.
Madrid Years Shape Luca
The Zidane family home has been in Madrid since 2001, after Zinedine Zidane signed from Juventus and joined Real Madrid. Luca trained at Valdebebas when he was very small, and he was the only sibling to play in goal. He later became first choice for Real Madrid’s under-18 team as it reached the semi-finals of the 2015-16 UEFA Youth League.
His route through the club kept running through the same family address. He trained with Real Madrid’s senior side in later seasons when his father was the head coach, and he played eight games for Real Madrid Castilla in 2016-17 alongside his older brother Enzo. Enzo retired from football in 2024 at 29.
Algeria Debut Before Argentina
The international change has already moved quickly. Zidane made his debut in October, then played at the Africa Cup of Nations, where Algeria lost to Nigeria in the quarter-finals on January 10. That sequence gave him real minutes before his first World Cup squad step.
Two decades after eight-year-old Luca watched the 2006 World Cup final in Berlin and attended all of France’s games at that tournament, he now heads toward a World Cup of his own. He called that possibility a childhood dream, saying, "To be able to play in a World Cup is a dream for any kid."
On Tuesday at 8pm CT in Kansas City, Zidane was scheduled to face Lionel Messi and defending World Cup champions Argentina. He framed the challenge in simple terms: "Messi is one of the greatest players in history," but "Algeria is a big football nation" and "We can surprise people."
