Watch | French President Macron wins a charitable match with a penalty

In the Bernard Giroux stadium in Plaisir, outside of Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron scores a penalty while taking part in the Varietes Club charity football tournament to help children in hospitals.Image courtesy of Reuters
Ahead of the Paris Olympics, French President Emmanuel Macron is continuing to showcase his athletic prowess after scoring a penalty in a charity soccer match on Wednesday.

Playing with a combination of former international players and medical specialists, Macron struck the ball low and into the bottom corner as the goalie stayed fixed to the spot.

Along with Didier Drogba and Eden Hazard, the 46-year-old also had France coach Didier Deschamps as teammates. The squad defeated a team that comprised Samuel Eto’o and former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger 5-3.

The Paris match was organized to generate funds for youngsters receiving medical care.

Macron wrote on X, “Two teams but the same goal: to improve the daily lives of hospitalized children and adolescents.”

In the lead-up to the Paris Olympics, Macron—who also scored a penalty in a charity game in 2021—has been more and more active in sports. He pledged to swim in the Seine before the Games, and last month, he was seen exercising on a punching bag.