Heraldo de Madrid - Habib Beye appointed coach of Marseille

NYSE - LSE

RBGPF	0.12%	82.5	$
BCC	-0.55%	85.6	$
JRI	-0.3%	13.18	$
CMSC	0.29%	23.93	$
NGG	-1.77%	90.81	$
RIO	2.07%	98.93	$
AZN	-0.39%	208.67	$
BCE	-0.31%	25.71	$
RELX	0.33%	30.55	$
GSK	0.51%	61.18	$
BTI	-0.07%	58.87	$
RYCEF	3.04%	18.1	$
BP	2.52%	38.53	$
VOD	0%	15.66	$
CMSD	0.38%	23.81	$

Habib Beye appointed coach of Marseille

SPORTS 18.02.2026

Habib Beye appointed coach of Marseille / Photo: JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER - AFP/File

Marseille have appointed their former captain Habib Beye as coach, the club announced on Wednesday, just over a week after he was sacked by their Ligue 1 rivals Rennes.

Text size:

Beye, 48, succeeds Roberto De Zerbi after the Italian left the 1993 Champions League winners early last week in the wake of a 5-0 hammering by bitter rivals Paris Saint-Germain.

He takes over a team which lies fourth in France's Ligue 1 with 12 games of the season remaining, five points adrift of Lyon in third and 12 behind leaders Lens.

The top three qualify automatically for next season's Champions League, with fourth entering in the third qualifying round.

Beye will be officially unveiled on Thursday before his first game in charge on Friday, away to Brest.

Marseille, who were knocked out of this season's Champions League on the final day of the league phase last month, are also through to the quarter-finals of the French Cup.

Former Senegal international full-back Beye had been in charge of Rennes for just over a year having previously been coach of lower-league side Red Star and worked as a prominent pundit on French television.

He played for Marseille from 2003 to 2007, notably featuring alongside Didier Drogba in the team that lost the 2004 UEFA Cup final to Valencia.

Beye, who also played for Strasbourg, finished his career in England, turning out for Newcastle United and Aston Villa as well as Doncaster Rovers in the second tier.

"His deep attachment to Olympique de Marseille and his intimate knowledge of the environment in Marseille can be major assets in taking the club to the next step," said a statement released by OM, who did not reveal the length of Beye's contract.

The announcement of Beye's arrival in Marseille came hours after his severance deal with Rennes was finalised and they appointed his successor in the shape of Franck Haise.

Frenchman Haise signed a contract until 2027 after Beye was dismissed with the Breton outfit sitting in sixth place in Ligue 1.

Haise, 54, guided Lens to the Champions League group stage in 2023/24 after the club finished runners-up in Ligue 1 the previous season.

He joined Nice in June 2024 but left in December after just five wins from 16 league games. Haise returns to Brittany after a six-year stint as a coach in the Rennes academy from 2006-12.

"It's a joy to return to Rennes, a true pleasure, with my staff, to join such a great club," Haise said in a statement.

J.Varela--HdM

Featured

Australia Olympic TV reporter apologises after slurring words

A prominent Australian television reporter apologised Thursday after slurring her way through a live broadcast from the Winter Olympics in a clip that went viral.

USA and Canada on course to meet for Olympic men's ice hockey gold

The USA and pre-tournament favourites Canada stayed on track to meet in the Olympic men's ice hockey final with quarter-final overtime wins on Wednesday.

Bodo/Glimt stun Inter, Gordon hits four in Newcastle Champions League romp

Norway's Bodo/Glimt stunned Inter Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday, beating last season's runners-up 3-1 in the first leg of their knockout phase play-off tie after Anthony Gordon scored four as Newcastle United hammered Qarabag 6-1 in Azerbaijan.

Arteta urges Arsenal to 'stand up' after title bid rocked by Wolves draw

Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal deserve criticism for the self-inflicted wounds that threaten to ruin their Premier League title bid after the leaders blew a two-goal lead in Wednesday's 2-2 draw at rock-bottom Wolves.