Who is Hervé Renard, Saudi Arabia's national team coach?

Who is Hervé Renard, Saudi Arabia's national team coach?

Steve Njuguna
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:21 PM

Hervé Renard is a French football coach. He is well known worldwide for his international success with Zambia, Ivory Coast and recently, Saudi Arabia. He is also known for upsetting big teams with lower-rated squads. This was seen when he led Zambia to the 2012 AFCON title and Saudi Arabia to a win over world champions Argentina. Join us today as we delve into the life of Hervé Renard.

Herve Renard
Hervé Renard during a match between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia at the Khalifa International Stadium in the Qatari capital Doha in 2019. Photo by Karim Jafaar
Source: Getty Images

During Renard’s time in Africa, he was one of the most sought-after managers. He made headlines at the 2022 World Cup after leading Saudi Arabia to a sensational 2-1 win over Argentina in the group stage.

Herve Renard's profile and bio summary

Full name

Hervé Jean-Marie Roger

Gender

Male

Date of birth

30 September 1968

Age

54 (as of January 2023)

Zodiac sign

Libra

Place of birth

Aix-les-Bains, France

Current residence

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Nationality

French

Ethnicity

French

Sexuality

Straight

Religion

Christian

Weight in kilograms

80

Weight in pounds

176

Height in feet

6

Height in centimetres

184

Hair colour

Brown

Marital status

Single

Playing career

AS Cannes, Stade de Vallauris, SC Draguignan

Coaching career

SC Draguignan,Cambridge United, Nam Dinh, AS Cherbourg, Zambia, Angola, USM Alger, Zambia, Sochaux, Ivory Coast, Lille, Morocco, Saudi Arabia

Net worth

$5 million

Social media

Instagram, Twitter

How old is Hervé Renard?

Hervé Renard (aged 54 as of January 2023) was born on September 30th 1968 in Aix-les-Bains, France. His maternal grandparents were Polish.

Hervé Renard's playing career

Renard played as a central defender in a career that spanned 15 years. He featured for AS Cannes, Stade De Vallauris and Sporting Club de Draguignan.

Hervé Renard's early coaching career

He began coaching in France at SC Draguinan just after his retirement in 1998. Between 2002 and 2003, he assisted Claude Le Roy at the Chinese club Shanghai Cosco. Later that season, he became manager of the English second-division club Cambridge United.

In 2004 he became head coach at the Vietnamese side Nam Dinh. A year later in 2005 saw he took over the reins at French side Cherbourg FC for the next two years. He first ventured into African football as Claude Le Roy's assistant for the Ghanaian national team in 2007. He first coached the Zambian national team in 2008 for a two-year stint before joining Angola in 2010. Hervé then had a stint in Algeria with USM Alger before returning to Zambia.

Hervé Renard's AFCON titles

His first major trophy in Africa came in 2012 when he led Zambia to the 2012 AFCON title in a penalty shootout win against the Ivory Coast. Three years later, he would repeat this feat with Cote D' Ivoire after a penalty shootout win in the final against Ghana. This achievement means he was the 1st coach to win AFCON with two different countries. He would later attempt to win it again as head coach of Morocco, but he resigned in 2019 after failing to do so.

Herve Renard
Ivory Coast's players and coaches celebrate with the trophy at the end of the 2015 African Cup of Nations final in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. Photo by Mohamed Hossam/Anadolu Agency
Source: Getty Images

Hervé Renard coaching in Ligue 1

Between his stints at Zambia and Ivory coast, he had an unsuccessful spell at the helm of Ligue 1 club Sochaux. After winning AFCON in 2015, he had another unsuccessful spell with LOSC Lille.

Herve Renard
Hervé Renard greets his players during a match between Lille OSC (LOSC) and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Grand Stade Pierre Mauroy. Photo by Jean Catuffe
Source: Getty Images

Hervé Renard's time in Saudi Arabia

Hervé Renard became Saudi Arabia's head coach in 2019. He masterminded their famous 2-1 win against Argentina at the 2022 World Cup. They were later eliminated after losing their remaining group games to Mexico and Poland.

Herve Renard coaching Saudi Arabia during their match against Argentina at the 2022 World Cup
Renard reacts during Saudi Arabia's 2022 FIFA World Cup win against Argentina at Lusail Stadium on November 22, 2022 in Lusail City, Qatar. Photo by Richard Heathcote
Source: Getty Images

Does Hervé Renard have a wife?

Hervé is currently in a relationship with Viviane Dieye. She is the widow of former Senegal coach the late Bruno Metsu who sadly died from cancer in 2013.

How many children does Hervé Renard have?

He has three children, namely Candice, Audrey and Kevin. Candice has become a recognisable figure in France, appearing in a number of reality TV shows.

Hervé Renard's lucky shirt

Hervé Renard wears his lucky white shirt in big games as he believes it is a good luck charm. He claims he wore the shirt during his AFCON wins in 2012 and 2015 and his World Cup win against Argentina.

Hervé Renard's achievements

The manager of Saudi Arabia's national team has previously been the manager of Zambia's national team, with whom he won the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. In addition to this, his achievements include:

Team

Achievement

Zambia

Coached them to AFCON 2012 title

Ivory Coast

Coached them to AFCON 2015 title

Saudi Arabia

Coached them to victory against Argentina at the 2022 World Cup

Hervé Renard's salary

Allegedly his estimated annual salary as Saudi Arabia's head coach is $2 million per season over a seven-year period. In addition, bonuses could see him make over $30 million.

What is Hervé Renard's net worth?

Hervé has an estimated net worth of $4 million as per sources in 2023. His riches come from his earnings over his coaching career.

Over the years, Hervé Renard has proven his credentials as one of the world's most successful coaches, especially at the international level. We can expect more from him as we head toward the 2026 World Cup.

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Authors
Steve Njuguna photo
Steve Njuguna
Steve Njuguna is a media professional with close to a decade of experience in the sports media industry. He has previously worked as a sports journalist with Bamba Sports TV, Vybez Radio and The Nairobian newspaper.