Scores of French football fans queued on Friday to snap up the first of the new shirts carrying a second star to mark the national team’s 2018 FIFA World Cup win.
The crowning of France as world champions in Russia in July unleashed a wave of euphoria across the country.
It helped foster a brief sense of national unity after years of tension and self-examination in the wake of attacks by Islamist militants since 2015.
“I’ll keep it all my life. It’s the second star! They made our dreams come true on the pitch,” said fan Brice Chevalier as he queued to enter the French Football Federation’s store in Paris.
France first won the FIFA World Cup, earning its first star, in 1998 with Zinedine Zidane its talisman and playmaker.
It was during an era when the team was referred to as Black-Blanc-Beur (Black-White-Arab), a reference to its diverse ethnic make-up.
In Russia during the final match, Les Bleus beat Croatia 4-2, with President Emmanuel Macron leaping for joy in the stands.
“I’m chuffed, I’ve been waiting a month for this moment,” said another life-long supporter, Jerome Cornec.
The Nike-branded strips are huge money-spinners.
France’s official shirt costs 85 euros (£76.3).
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