Zaire-Emery faces bar ban at France's Boston hotel due to US drinking age law

Warren Zaire-Emery faces an awkward separation from his France team-mates at the 2026 World Cup after Massachusetts state law bars the 20-year-old PSG midfielder from entering the hotel bar at Les Bleus’ Boston base.

France have chosen to stay at the Four Seasons in central Boston ahead of their final Group I fixture against Norway on June 26 — a departure from the isolated training camps they used at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. The luxury hotel’s Aujourd’hui Bar, however, is strictly off-limits to anyone under 21 under Massachusetts law, which prohibits entry to establishments that do not serve food regardless of whether the individual intends to drink or is accompanied by an adult.

Zaire-Emery does not turn 21 until March, meaning he will remain subject to the restriction throughout France’s time in Boston. The situation is complicated further by the bar’s proximity to the adjacent Aujourd’hui restaurant, making any informal team gathering in that area difficult to navigate. His PSG colleague Desire Doue, who celebrated his 21st birthday on June 3, is unaffected by the rule.

Whether the restriction will be rigorously enforced is unclear. Didier Deschamps’ squad are widely expected to progress deep into the tournament, and a mid-tournament night out at the hotel bar is not a realistic scenario. Still, the logistical awkwardness underlines the unusual choice of a city-centre hotel for a squad accustomed to more controlled environments.

France open their World Cup campaign against Senegal in New Jersey on Tuesday, before facing Iraq in Philadelphia on June 22 and Norway in Boston on June 26. They have been drawn in Group I alongside Senegal, Iraq, and Norway.

The tournament will mark the end of Deschamps’ tenure as France manager. The former midfielder, who lifted the World Cup as both a player in 1998 and a coach in 2018, has been linked with the vacant Italy job after the Azzurri failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.

Kylian Mbappe, France’s captain and talisman, has spoken of his desire to send Deschamps out on the highest possible note. “The best way to pay tribute to him is to win because he loves to win,” Mbappe said. “We’re going to make sure he has the best of the recent World Cups. Hopefully, it will be his last because I hope he doesn’t play for another team.”