Mandanda's retirement memoir wins Sportel prize in Monaco
By Zak Jackson, MonacoViews Editorial
Steve Mandanda's autobiography on post-career depression won the Prix de l'Autobiographie at Monaco's Sportel event.
Steve Mandanda, the former Marseille and France goalkeeper who retired at the end of 2025, returned to the public eye this month at the Sportel festival in Monaco, where his book 'Les jours d'après' received the Prix de l'Autobiographie. The award, handed out at the Grimaldi Forum, recognises sporting memoirs that go beyond the usual highlights and medals.
In the book, Mandanda writes candidly about the depression that followed the end of his playing days, describing the sudden loss of routine and purpose that many professional athletes face once the whistle blows for the last time. Speaking to Nice-Matin during his visit, he said that when everything stops, you lose a part of your identity, a line that captures the disorientation felt by players stepping away from decades of structured competition.
Mandanda used the Monaco appearance to offer advice to current players and younger athletes, urging them to prepare for life after sport well before retirement arrives. His comments add a rare, honest voice to a subject still largely unspoken in football, and the Sportel recognition gives the book fresh visibility among the sports and media figures who gather in the Principality each year for the festival.