As the french national team prepares to depart on june 9 for the united states, where they will face Senegal in their opening world cup match on june 16, they will first take on ivory coast in nantes on june 5 and northern ireland in lille on june 8. Two traditional friendly matches in the long history of the french national team. A look back at ten preparatory clashes that left their mark.

the heartbreak of cissé and zidane’s miss

France vs China, june 7, 2006

At geoffroy-guichard stadium, djibril cissé was given his chance by raymond domenech, but his first touch ended in tragedy. A tackle by chinese captain zheng zhi left cissé with a double fracture of his right tibia and fibula—a grim reminder of a similar injury he suffered in november 2004 with liverpool against blackburn. Meanwhile, zinedine zidane missed the only penalty of his international career, though he would later score two crucial penalties in the knockout stages against portugal and italy, and famously convert a panenka in the final shootout.

world cup outcome: runners-up

broken wings and a bruised thigh

south korea vs France: 2-3, may 26, 2002

Just eleven days before the world cup in south korea and japan, zidane—fresh off his champions league victory with real madrid—joined the french squad in ibusuki after a brief leave for the birth of his second child. But fatigue caught up with him quickly. Against south korea in suwon, he struggled and suffered a thigh injury that would haunt the french team. The loss to Senegal in the opening match marked the beginning of the end for roger lemerre’s side.

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination

the assassin in jersey 21

finland vs France: 0-1, june 5, 1998

In helsinki, david trezeguet’s goal did little to calm the nerves of the french team under aimé jacquet. christophe dugarry, after missing a chance, was branded an ‘assassin’ by commentator jean-michel larqué on live tv. The french players, offended, refused to appear on the téléfoot set the next day. A week later, despite his stellar season with bordeaux, dugarry was left out of the starting lineup against South Africa, while his replacement, stéphane guivarc’h, went on to score in the tournament.

world cup outcome: world champions

a three-part farce

France vs guatemala: 8-1, may 21, 1986

In tlaxcala, mexico, at an altitude of 2,230 meters, french players were furious when they discovered their unofficial training match against guatemala was being televised live on la cinq, with commentary from eugène saccomano and marius trésor. The furious henri michel split the match into three 33-minute periods. Played on a bumpy, potholed pitch in red jerseys at 12:15 p.m., the french players complained bitterly about the conditions. jean tigana called it ‘a marketing ploy’ and the team demanded a share of the broadcast rights.

world cup outcome: third place

boycotts and jeers

France vs Tunisia: 2-0, may 19, 1978

A week after michel hidalgo announced his 22-man squad—excluding albert gemmrich, who had scored against Iran the day before—France faced Tunisia in villeneuve-d’ascq. Under a banner calling for a boycott of the world cup in argentina—’1978 world cup: no football between concentration camps’—the french team struggled in the first half, jeered by tunisian fans shouting, ‘help, platini, help!’ Platini, introduced at halftime, scored the opener in a 2-0 victory.

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination

a final hurdle in scotland

selkirk vs France: 2-11, july 7, 1966

In preparation for the world cup in england, France took on modest scottish sides to boost their strikers’ confidence. After victories over gala fairydean rovers (8-1) and vale of leithen (8-0), they faced selkirk in a three-part match. However, a last-minute withdrawal by lucien muller—who claimed he was never intended to play—cast a shadow over the outing. Henri guérin, the manager, praised the team’s ‘fantastic spirit.’

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination

just fontaine’s breakthrough

narke vs France: 0-12, may 25, 1958

With raymond kopa unavailable, the french team, led by paul nicolas and albert batteux, dismantled a third- and fourth-division selection from the narke district in sweden. Just fontaine, who had scored in only two of his previous five matches for France, netted a quadruplet, setting the stage for his legendary world cup scoring spree that would see him finish with 13 goals.

world cup outcome: third place

a team of substitutes

belgium vs France: 3-3, may 30, 1954

With the world cup in switzerland just weeks away, manager gaston barreau shook up his squad, dropping five key players including rené vignal and joseph ujlaki. At the heysel stadium, he fielded an experimental lineup—seven of whom would play in the tournament—while a separate french b team took on spain. The lack of cohesion was glaring, and the team’s fortunes did not improve in switzerland.

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination

the englishman’s impatience

netherlands vs France: 4-5, may 10, 1934

New manager george kimpton, an englishman advocating the rarely used w.m. formation in France, attempted to impose his tactics just two weeks before the world cup in italy. In amsterdam, France’s defense was torn apart. Kimpton’s frustration boiled over in turin, where he reportedly told his half-back georges verriest, who had marked the austrian maestro matthias sindelar: ‘if he goes to the toilet, you go too!’ The french were eliminated in the first round.

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination

a royal cruise

France vs romania: 4-2, july 10, 1930

Thirteen days aboard the conte verde from villefranche-sur-mer to montevideo forged bonds among the players. A week after arriving in uruguay, France faced romania in a friendly before the first-ever world cup. ‘The match lasted an hour,’ wrote l’auto, ‘after which France won 4-2.’ The romanian players had been selected by king carol ii, who had granted them three months’ leave from their jobs to prepare.

world cup outcome: group-stage elimination