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In what was arguably the greatest on-field scandal since Eric Cantona lunged at a Crystal Palace supporter over a decade earlier, Zidane's World Cup Final headbutt is ingrained in the collective memory of football fans across the world.

The France captain trudged from the field, past the World Cup trophy he had lifted eight years earlier, and down the tunnel as a shellshocked Les Bleusside did their best to keep their cool during the ensuing penalty shootout.

Materazzi's Italy prevailed and Fabio Cannavaro hoisted the trophy above his head in Berlin but the image of Zidane planting his into Materazzi's chest is the one which remains most striking.

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Materazzi on Zidane headbutt: Let bygones be bygones

Since that day, Italy have not won a World Cup knockout match and even missed the last two tournaments, whilst France have made each of the past two finals, winning in 2018.

The defining moment of Materazzi's career is something the former Italy centre-half is still asked about to this day.

"Have I spoken to Zinedine Zidane? Not yet. For me, it’s no problem. For me, in football, during the 90 minutes, you can do everything to give your team the opportunity to win, and then in the end, when the referee says it's over, for me it's over," he said, in an interview with Hajper.

While Materazzi deems the headbutt water under the bridge, woe betide the reporter who has the courage to ask Zidane for his thoughts on the incident.

The Frenchman may see things slightly differently given Materazzi's comment, antagonising the then-France captain, elicited the response it did.

Towering centre-back Materazzi continued playing at the top level until 2011 when he retired with Inter Milan, before briefly coming out of retirement to play in India during 2014/15.

Zidane, meanwhile, bowed out of the professional game with his headbutt in the 2006 World Cup Final, his final act as a player.

"For me, it was easy at the end of the game, one minute later. There was no problem. I don't know about that for him but I have much respect for him.

"On his job in Madrid, too, he won many, many Champions League titles. He was a very good player and a legend for me, too. That's it," Materazzi added.

Italy must defeat Bosnia and Herzegovina in a play-off match to book their place at the 2026 World Cup, 20 years on from their triumph in Germany.

Joe joined FourFourTwoas senior digital writer in July 2025 after five years covering Leeds United in the Championship and Premier League. Joe's 'Mastermind' specialist subject is 2000s-era Newcastle United having had a season ticket at St. James' Park for 10 years before relocating to Leeds and later London. Joe takes a keen interest in youth football, covering PL2, U21 Euros, as well as U20 and U17 World Cups in the past, in addition to hosting the industry-leading football recruitment-focused SCOUTEDpodcast. He is also one of the lucky few to have 'hit top bins' as a contestant on Soccer AM. It wasn't a shin-roller.