Baku, August 19, AZERTAC

Thierry Henry stepped down as head coach of the French Olympic men’s soccer program after leading the team to a runner-up finish at the Paris Games.

Henry decided to end his contract, which ran until June 2025, for personal reasons, according to the French Football Federation.

“Winning the silver medal at the Olympic Games for my country will remain one of the greatest prides of my life,” Henry said in a press release, according to a translation. “I am incredibly grateful to the federation, the players, the staff and the supporters who allowed me to live a magical experience.”

France lost the Olympic final to Spain 5-3 after Spain’s Sergio Camello scored twice in extra time.

Before that, France’s Jean-Philippe Mateta scored on a penalty in stoppage time of the second half to level the match.

France won its third soccer medal in Olympic history and its first medal in 40 years.

Henry, 47, was announced as the head coach in August 2023. France received an automatic spot in the 16-team Olympic field as host nation.

Olympic men’s soccer rosters are made up of players 23 years old and younger with three over-age exceptions.

Henry, a rising star on France’s 1998 World Cup champion team, never got the chance to play in the Olympics.

France did not qualify for Olympic men’s soccer from 2000 through 2016, then returned in Tokyo, where it was knocked out in the group stage.