United News of Bangladesh

Luca Zidane, the 27-year-old son of French football legend Zinedine Zidane, has switched his international allegiance from France to Algeria. The goalkeeper made the change with the hope of playing in a World Cup, much like his father. FIFA officially approved his switch on Friday and updated the information on Change of Association Platform’s website. The Algeria National Football Team also confirmed the news with an X (formerly Twitter) post. The post, which included a photo of Luca Zidane, welcomed him as a “New Desert Warrior.” Luca qualifies to represent Algeria through his paternal grandparents, who were from the Kabylie region of northern Algeria. He is the second of Zinedine Zidane’s four sons, all of whom came up through the Real Madrid academy. Luca won caps for France at various junior levels, including the under-20 team, but his hopes of representing the senior French team have diminished in recent seasons. He currently plays for Granada in Spain’s second division, while Mike Maignan has taken over the No. 1 spot for France from former captain Hugo Lloris. Espanyol eyes top spot as unbeaten side visits Real Madrid in La Liga clash With Luca’s addition, Algeria now has another option in its goalkeeping ranks. The team has used four keepers in the last year, including first-choice Alexis Guendouz, home-based Oussama Benbot, Anthony Mandrea of France’s third division, and Alexandre Oukidja, who plays in Serbia. Algeria is currently at the top of their World Cup qualifying group, four points ahead of second-place Uganda. They are expected to secure a spot in the 2026 finals in North America during their qualifier against Somalia next month. Luca’s Career Luca joined the Real Madrid academy at age six, where he stayed until he was 20. He played for the Real Madrid Castilla team and also made two appearances for the senior squad between 2017 and 2019. He had a loan spell with Racing Santander before permanently joining Rayo Vallecano, where he made further appearances in La Liga. He later played for Eibar in La Liga 2 before moving to Granada in July 2024.