• [A renseigner]
  • [A renseigner]
  • [A renseigner]
  • [A renseigner]

Our global ambassador Zinedine Zidane

  • Read more about Zinedine Zidane

    Meet Zinedine Zidane in The Never Ending Pass

    Zinedine Zidane is a retired French football player who won all the major international and European trophies. He is one the most loved icons in France and worldwide.

    Ambassador of the Danone Nations Cup for 8 years, he enhanced the awareness of the event thanks to his involvement.

    For a young footballer, being sponsored by Zinedine Zidane is the greatest honour imaginable. His commitment to the Danone Nations Cup has boosted the event’s profile enormously.

    For each of the last six years, France’s celebrated number 10 has been there on the pitch with the children to kick off the World Final.

    Interview with Zinedine Zidane:

    You’ve been ambassador of the Danone Nations Cup for nearly ten years. What’s behind that loyalty?

    At some point in your life,you want to give something back. Football has given me so much, and I wanted to pass on my experience to the younger generation, not just from a technical point of view, but more in terms of the state of mind you need to adopt. When you’re 11, football really is just a game. It’s a passion that you live to the full with your friends. My message is a simple one. You have to hold on to that attitude through the years. Football has the power to bring people together, whether on the pitch or in the stands. Every year, I’m amazed to see all these kids coming from the four corners of the earth, with their different languages andcultures...yet when they come together on the pitch, all the barriers disappear!

    What’s your role at DANONE?

    I’m helping to develop programmes and initiatives for children, which of course includes the Danone Nations Cup. I’m keen to pass on what life has given me and give something back, and so it was only natural for me to join forces wi th Danone and Franck Riboud, who are launching a number of initiatives for children in every part of the world. Together, we’re developing prog r ammes focusing on nutrition, physical and intellectual development, for children all over the planet. I am also in the Danone Communities board alongside Franck Riboud and Professor Yunus.

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    03 April 2012
    Leroy Fer, The Netherlands ambassador
    Leroy Johan Fer was born on 5 January 1990 in Zoetermeer in the Netherlands.  He currently plays as a central midfielder in the Eredivisie championship for the FC Twente and the national team, Netherlands U21. During his youth he also played for Feyenoord Rotterdam for 4 years. Cor Pot, coach of the Netherlands U21, compared Fer to Patrick Vieira. According to Pot both players show many similarities, on and off the field. He is the new Danone Nations Cup ambassador for the Netherlands in 2012
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    25 July 2011
    Paul le Guen, France ambassador
    Paul Le Guen, ex-player (Brest, PSG and French team) and now coach (Renne, OL, Glasgow, PSG...) is the ambassador for France’s Danone Nations Cup  "Bien dans tes baskets, bien dans ton assiette". Sensitive to the social project that represents the Danone Nations Cup, Paul Le Guen wishes, through its numerous experiences, to encourage the kids to fulfil their dreams and share with them the Danone Nations Cup values.
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    21 June 2011
    Tarek Hadj Adlane, Algeria ambassador
     Tarek Hadj Adlane is one of the most known algerian football player. He holds two records: one for the goals scored in championship (320), and one for receiving the Golden Shoe three times in 1990, 1994 and 1995.He started his carreer in one of the most prestigious African club (Jeunesse Sportive de Kabylie – JSK) where he won more than 5 prizes.After some time in Saudi Arabia, Tarek Hadj Adlane comes back to Algeria in the USM Alger club where he won 4 times the Algerian Cup.
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    27 May 2011
    José Francisco Fonseca, Mexico ambassador
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    27 May 2011
    Sebastian Abreu, Uruguay ambasssador
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    27 May 2011
    Roman Hubnik, Czech Republic ambassador
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    27 May 2011
    José Luis Sierra, Chile ambassador
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    27 May 2011
    Dimitar Berbatov, Bulgaria ambassador
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    27 May 2011
    Javier Zanetti, Argentina ambassador
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    27 May 2011
    Vitor Baía, Portugal Ambassador
     Vitor Baía is the Portuguese ex-player with the most titles ! He was a goal keeper in clubs such as Futebol Clube Porto ( European Champions League 2011) and Barcelona Football Club where he ended his career as Champion.  He is now the National Ambassador for DNC in Portugal.  Baia chose to be the Ambassador for DNC because the values he defends are in line with the DNC Values - sport and food for more healthy generations. He also runs a Foundation that helps children in Portugal. As part of our partnership with Vitor Baia, Danone is also helping to build a house for poor children in Portugal.
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    25 May 2011
    Maxim SHATSKIKH, Ukraine ambassador
    Well known football player in Ukraine. Shatskikh is the second best goal-scorer in the history of the Ukrainian Premier League. He played for Dinamo Kiev in 1999-2009. Now Shatskikh is playing for Arsenal Kiev (since February 2010). Recently he has been awarded the Golden Ball for scoring his 100-th goal in the Ukrainian Top League.  Married, has two daughters (8 and 15 y.o.)
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    25 May 2011
    David MULLIGAN, New Zealand ambassador
    After progressing through the New Zealand youth ranks, Mulligan has established himself as a regular New Zealand All White player; giving him unique experiences against some of the greatest players on the International stage.   As well as numerous other international appearances he represented New Zealand in the World Cup 2010 in South Africa!  He now plays centre midfield for Auckland City.
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    18 May 2011
    Georghe Hagi, Romania ambassador
     Gica Hagi made his debut in a national competition at the early age of 11, in 1976 at the “Red Ties” Cup finals a national junior championship.The debut in Romania’s premier football league came at only 17 and the first call to the national senior football team came less than a year later.  Soon afterwards followed Hagi’s first participation in a European Football Championship (France 1984), three championship titles in Romania, two cups in Romania, the European SuperCup (1987) and his first qualification to a FIFA World Cup; Italy 1990. Romania’s best football player left in 1990 for Real Madrid, and 4 years later led Romania’s “yellow bunch” to the nation’s greatest football performance: World Cup quarterfinals in USA 1994.  Another two European Championships (England 1996 and Belgium-Netherlands 2000) and one more FIFA World Cup (France 1998).After the memorable World Cup in USA, Hagi returned to Spain. But this time to play for CF Barcelona, alongside other great footballers such as Gica Popescu, Stoichkov and Figo. The Galatasaray Istanbul followed with an impressive collection of national and international trophies: four championship titles, two cups, the UEFA Cup and the European SuperCup.In 2008, 32 years after his debut in a national competition, Gheorghe Hagi announced his return to football in order to thank to all those who had given him the chance to make himself known, by launching a football competition for junior players: the Hagi Cup.Two years later, Danone , who have been organising the DNC since 2000, decided to join efforts in promoting junior football, creating together an unrivalled competition: the Hagi Danone Cup.Hagi, the “King” of Romanian football, holds a couple of records – the highest number of goals scored by a Romanian football player (317) and the highest number of goals scored in European competitions (32). He has high hopes that these figures will be surpassed not by just anyone but by a kid who will say: “Yes, I played in the Hagi Danone Cup!”.
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    12 May 2011
    Cafu, Brasil ambassador
    For the 3rd year of partnership, Cafu is the ambassador for Brazil’s Danone Nations Cup 2011.He holds the record for the most games played for the Brazilian team with 148 matches and was part of the team when Brazil won the World Cup for the fifth time.Besides being a very famous and recognized football player in the country, Cafu is also linked to social initiatives specially with Cafu Foundation – his initiative to give opportunities to poor children to learn football.
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    12 May 2011
    Tomasz Iwan, Poland ambassador
    Tomasz Iwan is a retired Polish footballer who played as a midfielder for a number of clubs throughout Europe, including Olimpia Poznań, ŁKS Łódź, Warta Poznań and Lech Poznań in Poland, Roda JC, Feyenoord, PSV and RBC Roosendaal in the Netherlands, Trabzonspor in Turkey, Austria Wien and Admira Wacker in Austria. He also represented the Polish national side, playing in 40 matches and scoring 4 goals.
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    12 May 2011
    Carlos Kameni, Spain ambassador
    Carlos Kameni (born 18 February 1984) has been playing for the Cameroon national team since the age of 17.   Since 2004 he has been a goalkeeper for RCD Espanyol in the Spanish first division.  RCD Espanyol, from Barcelona, is one of the most ancient and important Football clubs in La Liga (the Spanish league). Kameni was first spotted when, aged 16, he became the youngest footballer to win an Olympic gold medal, in 2000.Kameni is the national ambassador for the Danone Nations Cup in Spain this year!
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    12 May 2011
    Tsuyoshi Kitazawa, Japan ambassador
     Born in Tokyo on 10th August 1968, Tsuyoshi Kitazawa is a former player of the Japanese national soccer team. After graduating from Shukutoku High School, Mr. T. Kitazawa joined the football club of Honda Motor., Ltd.He became the member of the Japanese national soccer team, and then joined Yomiuri Club (currently known as Tokyo Verdy). Kitazawa retired in 2003.   Currently he is actively involved in the social projects and supporting children through soccer. Kitazawa has been the DNC Japan ambassador since 2009.  He was present at the DNC World Final 2010 in South Africa!
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