10th June, 1992. At the Rasunda Stadion in Solna, in the suburbs of Stockholm, a France team, fresh off a historic qualifying campaign, steps onto the pitch for the opening match of the Euro. On the field is a 23-year-old starting midfielder, who has no idea this tournament will end in disaster. His name is Didier Deschamps. Thirty-four years later, he faces Sweden again, but this time from the dugout.
Under Michel Platini, Les Bleus had a flawless qualifying run: 8 matches, 8 wins, including victories in Spain and Czechoslovakia, and boasted a 19-game unbeaten streak, making them one of the tournament favorites.
The context was promising: Jean-Pierre Papin was the reigning Ballon d'Or winner - the first Frenchman to win it while playing for a French club - and Eric Cantona had just been crowned a champion of England with Leeds United. With Deschamps, Laurent Blanc, and Emmanuel Petit in the squad, this tournament marked a bridge between the 1984 European champions and the future 1998 World Cup winners.
France arrived in Sweden as natural favorites. And that’s exactly when the trouble began.
An opening match to forget
In midfield, Deschamps and Franck Sauzee handled ball recovery, but it was also up to them to move the ball forward, and they struggled to deliver the final pass. The French conceded the opening goal in the 24th minute: Jan Eriksson headed in a corner from Anders Limpar. The equaliser came from a bit of Platini inspiration at half-time: he brought on the diminutive midfielder Christian Perez, who found Papin in behind the defence. The Ballon d'Or winner gave Thomas Ravelli no chance, 1-1. Klas Ingesson hit the post, and both teams ultimately seemed content with the draw.
This opening draw against Sweden wasn’t yet fatal, but it planted a seed of doubt that Les Bleus would never shake. After a goalless draw against England, France absolutely had to beat Denmark. And that’s when the most telling image of the French camp’s blind confidence appeared: at the end of the England match, Jean-Pierre Papin raised his arms in victory, despite the 0-0 draw. This awkward gesture showed just how certain Les Bleus were that they would beat Denmark in the third match. The Danes, let’s remember, had only been called up ten days before the tournament to replace Yugoslavia, who were excluded due to civil war.
The elimination that wasn’t supposed to happen
The Danes scored in the 8th minute through Henrik Larsen. Papin equalised after a backheel from Jean-Philippe Durand. Les Bleus were virtually through... until the 78th minute, when Lars Elstrup beat Bruno Martini. France exited the tournament without a single win, knocked out by a team that had been planning their holidays just two weeks earlier.
Platini would later candidly admit his share of responsibility: "I should have changed everything, but in practice, it was impossible." His defensive block tactic, so effective in qualifying, had reached its limits at the worst possible time. Some players even felt he had checked out before the tournament began. He announced his resignation soon after, on the very day France was named host of the 1998 World Cup.
A very different situation in 2026
The 2026 French team has little in common with the overconfident squad that went into Euro 92. Three wins, ten goals scored, two conceded, nine points: Les Bleus have established themselves as solid favourites in this World Cup group stage. This time, their favorite status is well deserved.
But this is exactly where Deschamps’ personal history comes into play. In 1992, he was on the pitch when a supremely confident French team was knocked out by a supposed underdog. He knows better than anyone that Sweden at a major tournament is never an easy opponent, even if Blagult snuck in through the back door. Third in Group F with four points, the Swedes may have lost 5-1 to the Netherlands, but they also thrashed Tunisia (5-1) and held Japan to a draw (1-1). These are teams that know how to rise to the occasion. Deschamps hasn’t forgotten. The memory of the 23-year-old player he was at Rasunda in 1992 may be the best antidote to French complacency.