It’s June 1998 and France is hosting the biggest sporting event in its history. With the largest number of participating countries ever in the World Cup, France is ready for the biggest party in football. But behind the footballing glamour France was hiding a dark reality. As the most racially troubled country in Europe, France was divided by the question of immigration. Jean-Marie Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Front openly attacked the multiracial makeup of the French national team.

I just think it was cheap talk, you know, France always has been great to welcome people in always as well as we’re wearing the French shirt. You know, no matter where you are coming from, everyone was proud to be French.

But what Le Pen was choosing to ignore was that the French football had always reflected the country’s racial diversity. Many of France’s greatest ever players had come from immigrant backgrounds. Players like Raymond Kopa and Michael Platini. But even their exuberant talents had not brought footballing glory to France.

The French team was a delight to watch, was a team played beautifully and entertained the crowds. But there’s always been a conflict in French football culture. You know, should we win, or should we go up and play brilliantly?

In the 68-year history of the World Cup, the French had never reached the final, an embarrassment for the country that had invented the competition in the first place. But over the course of 33 days in the summer of 1998, the French team were determined to shake off their image as perennial losers, and at the same time changed the nation's understanding of itself and its relationship with its people.

What surprised me was the people in the street, black, white, brown. I was in the bus, right in the back. I turned around and looked behind. There must be more than 500 motorbikes following us. It was incredible, really incredible.

Zinedine Zidane and his team were about to turn France’s footballing fortunes around and racially unite the divided country.

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multiracial: adj. 多民族的

exuberant: adj. 丰富的， 非凡的

shake off: v. 摆脱

perennial: adj. 永久的，长期的