Zinedine Zidane is known for many things, from his all-star football career to his iconic bald head. Zidane faced hair loss from his mid-twenties and instead of resisting, he embraced it.
His shaved head became a famous part of his appearance and undoubtedly inspired other men to bite the bullet and shave their remaining locks. But is total hair loss inevitable, or can you get your hair back if you’re experiencing male pattern baldness like Zidane?
If you’re losing hair, you have options. Shaving your head is one of those options, for sure, but you can also take steps to prevent further hair loss and even regrow the hair you used to have. In this article, we’ll explore:
Zinedine Zidane was born on June 23, 1972, in Marseille, France. He’s a football legend and over the years, he’s played for Cannes, Bordeaux, Juventus, and Real Madrid.
He was part of the French team that won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000. He’s also been named FIFA World Player of the Year three times.
He managed Real Madrid and during this time, the team won 11 major trophies, making him one of the most successful managers in the club’s history. He’s become well known for his calm, steady attitude and his iconic bald look in recent years.
Zidane didn’t go bald overnight. The process was gradual, and it took many years for him to fully embrace a shaved head. Here, we explore how his hair changed over the years.
As a young man, Zidane had a healthy head of hair. This image from 1996 shows Zidane aged 23, with no signs of balding. However, things were about to change.
By 2002, when Zidane was 30 years old, his hair had changed dramatically. He had significant temple hair loss and had developed a bald spot on the crown — both classic signs of male pattern baldness.
Four years later, in 2006, Zidane was favouring buzz cuts. He had a strong M-shaped hairline and still had a visible bald spot on the crown, but he took back some control over his appearance by buzzing his hair short.
By 2014, Zidane was fully shaving his head. Despite this, you can see the bald spot on his crown spreading across the top of his head.
Zidane kept his head closely shaved ever since. In 2018, the top of his head was mostly bald, although you can see an area at the front where he still retained some hair growth.
These images from 2024 show that Zidane is now nearly completely bald on top. He continues to shave his head, but only small areas of frontal hair growth remain.
However, his scalp is darker around the back and sides of his head, suggesting that he may still grow hair in those areas if he stopped shaving.
Zidane has a condition called androgenetic alopecia, or male pattern baldness. This causes hair loss in a predictable pattern, which is documented by the Norwood Scale.
Zidane appears to have worked through every stage of the Norwood Scale and reached Norwood stage 7, where hair only grows at the back and sides of the scalp. Male pattern baldness is the most common type of hair loss in men, and is mainly caused by genetics and hormones.
For men with male pattern baldness, some hair follicles are genetically sensitive to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a male sex hormone. DHT shrinks the sensitive follicles so they produce thinner, shorter hairs, and eventually stop producing hair altogether.
Hair on the back and sides of the head is usually not affected. As you can see, Zidane retains hair growth on the back and sides of his head, but chooses to shave these areas too for a more intentional look.
Zidane appears to have made peace with his hair loss and has fully embraced baldness. Hair loss from male pattern baldness won’t regrow on its own, but there are ways he could potentially regain some of his lost hair if he wished to.
For hair loss as advanced as Zidane’s, non-surgical treatments are unlikely to have a major impact on his appearance. To regain his hairline, he would probably need a hair transplant.
However, at Norwood stage 6 or 7, a hair transplant would probably not be able to restore full coverage. The images above show a man with Norwood stage 6 hair loss before and after a 3,000 graft hair transplant at the Wimpole Clinic.
This is a significant improvement, but at Norwood stage 6 you often have to sacrifice some thickness around the crown area due to the extent of hair loss. Even better results can be achieved if you stabilise hair loss before it reaches stage 6.
Medications like Minoxidil and Finasteride can help to slow down and even reverse hair loss. Once hair loss is stable, you may then be a good candidate for a hair transplant.
If Zidane had approached a hair clinic before his hair loss was so extensive, he would have had a better chance at regaining a full head of hair. However, a hair transplant is not for everyone, and Zidane appears happy and confident with his decision to go natural.
Hair transplantation is the process of moving healthy hair follicles from a donor area (usually the back or sides of the head) to areas of hair loss. Skilled surgeons can create incredibly natural-looking results with this process — it’s even possible to get a hair transplant without anyone knowing.
There are two main types of hair transplant: follicular unit extraction (FUE) and follicular unit transplantation (FUT). FUE involves harvesting individual follicles with a micro-punch tool, which leaves near-invisible scarring.
FUT involves taking a strip of skin from the donor area and harvesting follicles from that strip. FUT allows more follicles to be moved in one go, but leaves a linear hair transplant scar at the donor area which may be visible if you cut your hair short.
With both methods, you’ll experience shock loss several weeks after the procedure — where the newly transplanted hairs fall out. However, the follicles remain and will begin producing new hair within 3-4 months.
By 12-18 months, you’ll see the final results of your transplant. A hair transplant is permanent, so you should continue to have healthy hair growth for a lifetime.
Are you experiencing hair loss like Zidane? At the Wimpole Clinic, we’re experts in the diagnosis and management of different types of alopecia.
If you’re losing hair, a trichologist can shed some light on the reasons behind it. These hair doctors use diagnostic trichology tests, such as a hair pull test or blood tests for hair loss, to identify the reason your hair is falling out.
They’ll then work with you to create a comprehensive treatment plan, which may include:
If you’re eligible for a hair transplant, you’ll have access to some of the best hair transplant surgeons in the UK. Ready to learn how we can help you get your hair back on track? Book a consultation at your nearest clinic location today.
Footballer hair transplants are incredibly common. These stars are constantly in the public eye, and it’s understandable that they want to look their best. Footballers like Rob Holding, Mo Salah, and Wayne Rooney have all opted for transplants to get the look they wanted.
People only usually have hair transplant regrets if their transplant isn’t successful. Fortunately, hair transplant success rates at good clinics are very high — 97%-100% at the Wimpole Clinic. To avoid regrets, choose a high-quality clinic and experienced surgeon in a location where you can attend hair transplant aftercare appointments, rather than cheap (but potentially risky) hair clinics abroad.
Ronaldo is an advocate of hair transplants and co-owns several hair clinics. Ronaldo has not responded to questions about whether he had a hair transplant himself, but many fans believe he may have had one at some point to maintain his youthful hairline.
Not every bald person is eligible for a hair transplant, and plenty of people without hair are happy to stay bald. A hair transplant is suitable for a specific group of people who wish to regain lost hair, have a suitable supply of donor hair, and meet other medical requirements for the procedure.
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