On July 12, 1998, Emmanuel Petit entered the legend. That evening, at the Stade de France, the midfielder at the famous ponytail scored the third goal of the Blues against Brazil in the world Cup final, sealing a historic victory and offering France for its first star. If other heroes of 1998 such as Zinedine Zidane or Laurent Blanc turned to a coach career, has chosen another way to him: that of the media. Consultant for France Télévisions, then columnist on BFMTV and RMC, he notably found his former teammate Christophe Dugarry. In parallel, Emmanuel Petit has had another adventure: that of paternity.
From her union with actress Agathe de la Fontaine was born a girl, Zoé. But for several years, their relationship has been marked by a painful distance. Now 22 years old, Zoé pursues a modeling career for major brands, while the father-daughter link still seems broken. Podcast guest Paternalbroadcast on October 30, 2024, Emmanuel Petit had engaged in open heart: “I would be ready to come back to my title of world champion if I could find the connection I had with my daughter Zoé on the first years of her life”.
Emmanuel Petit returns to the painful death of Olivier, his older brother
And the pain of the absence of a loved one, Emmanuel Petit knows since he lost his older brother, Olivier, in 1988. This drama occurred when he was only 17 years old. Olivier, also a promising footballer, died brutally at the age of 19 of a brain aneurysmjust before playing a match with the AS Monaco reserve team … It was with our colleagues from Yahoo Sport that he returned to this tragedy that deeply upset him.
Emmanuel Petit remembered the damaged look: “He died playing football in front of his future wife, in front of my other brother David. I learn it in the most terrible ways since my parents went down to Monaco. I always remember it because we were with a friend that day “. The terrible news comes to them via a phone call that has changed their lives to all-in-law. “In fact, in the space of two, three minutes, I see the face of my father who liquefied and he begins to hit his head against the wall saying: ‘It’s not true, it’s not true, it’s not true’”he said. He explained that he refused to look at his brother’s coffin and preferred him “Turn your back” So as not to have this sad memory in memory.
The footballer “on a mission” for his brother
He remembered having said to himself: “Up there, the football gods decided that they took your brother on a field, they will put you on professional ground and you will have a great career”. “I experienced it like that. I felt like I was on a mission. I said to myself: ‘I will do everything to make my brother honored and my family find a smile’. And every match I made, I always repeated the same gestures “said Zoé’s dad. Then reveal his routine: “When I arrived on the field, I always took a little tuft of grass like that, I swung it, and I always had a thought, sentences for my brother. (…) I knew he looked at me, I knew he was protecting me when I played. It was a pact between him and me saying: ‘I’m going to protect you, but you have to give everything’ “.
