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Did the deal go through?
On Friday evening, French newspaper L’Equipe revealed scenes of talks being undertaken by RMC Sports Radio to bolster its media staff in preparation for coverage of the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in the US, Canada and Mexico.
Big ambition… and exceptional names
According to France’s most popular sports newspaper, Radio RMC, always keen to cover major events, has seriously tried to sign two of the most famous coaches in the Arab world to work as technical analysts and tactical advisors on the World Cup coverage team.
The two names targeted by French radio are Jamel Belmadi, former Algerian coach and 2019 African Cup of Nations champions, and Moroccan coach Walid Regraghi, who led the Atlas Lions to the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, achieving an unprecedented historic achievement.
In addition to these two big names, RMC had already managed to sign former France defender Samuel Umtiti to join the analytics team.
Negotiations hit roadblocks
But despite the efforts made, L’Equipe explained that the attempts have not been successful, at least so far, without the newspaper revealing the detailed reasons for the failure of the negotiations, whether related to financial or other professional commitments of the coaches.
The dream is still there… and Balmadi is on the radar
Despite these hurdles, the French newspaper confirmed that RMC Radio still dreams of adding Jamel Belmadi to its analyst team, not only to cover the World Cup, but permanently starting next season, a move that could give the radio a deeper and more diverse analytical dimension.
It should be noted that the former selector of the Algeria national team, who led the “greens” in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. and Arabic 2021. cup titles, is still first-team coach at Qatari club Al-Duhail, meaning any move to a media job would require either terminating his contract with the club or waiting until his current association ends.
