15 Greatest French Players in Football History [Ranked]

Football would not be football as we know it without the French. Bringing that unique blend of grace, winning mentality, personality and skill, there have been so many iconic players from France over the years.

From older generations, such as Alain Giresse and then Laurent Blanc after him, to more modern icons such as Robert Pires and Raphael Varane, there has been such a vast array of talent it’s no easy task naming the very best of them. Indeed, even now, the likes of Thierry Henry and Zinedine hold such influence over the younger generation, with Real Madrid superstar Kylian Mbappe making his feelings known on the impact of those legendary players before him. But does Mbappe already rank among the greatest French players of all-time?

Ranking factors

• International achievements (honours, appearances, goals, assists, etc)
• Importance within the France team
• Club achievements (honours, appearances, goals, assists, etc)
• Individual awards
• Legacy within football

15

Jean-Pierre Papin

Career Span: 1981 – 2004

Jean-Pierre Papin, a true legend of French football and the 1991 Ballon d’Or winner, was one of the most clinical strikers of his era—and his name is as quintessentially French as they come. Beloved by fans of both the national team and Marseille, Papin scored an impressive 30 goals in 54 appearances for France, though he was unable to lead his country to international glory.

During his career, the term ‘Papinade’ was used to describe powerful volleys from difficult angles, which paid homage to Papin’s unparalleled talent of scoring bags of goals for club and country, no matter how difficult the delivery into him was to control. ‘The Lion of Boulogne”s acrobatic performances played a leading role in Marseille’s galacticos period, and brought the X-factor when it came to making weekend television all that more exciting in the 90s.

14

Karim Benzema

Career Span: 2004 – present

The second Ballon d’Or winner on this list, and another player whose international legacy has been tarnished by events off the pitch that prevented Karim Benzema from playing for France between 2016 and 2020. Despite this five-year absence from the Les Blues set-up, the maverick has still played 97 times for his country, scoring important goals at the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2020.

A career littered with an abundance of accolades, Benzema developed into one of the great goalscorers in modern times, carrying Real Madrid to the 2021/22 Champions League in the post-Ronaldo era. This triumph added to his collection of five winners’ medals in Europe’s prodigious competition, to compliment his 32 total major honours. Playing 648 games for Los Blancos and scoring 354 goals, Benzema has to be in the conversation around the greatest French forwards of all time, even if, internationally, he hasn’t had the same claim to fame.

13

N’Golo Kante

Career Span: 2012 – present

While his international career has come up shorter than those of France’s other footballing heroes, there is no doubting just how crucial N’Golo Kante has been to Les Bleus’ recent success. He was an instrumental figure during the 2018 World Cup, with the former Chelsea man often a cheat code in the engine room.

Things may have played out differently for Les Bleus had Kante been fit for the 2022 World Cup. When the diminutive midfielder was signed by Leicester City in 2015 for only £5 million, no one expected him to transform them from a side narrowly surviving relegation to the most unlikely league winners of all time. But he did that and more at club level, going on to help himself to two Premier League titles and a Champions League winners’ medal as his influence was felt worldwide.

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12

Just Fontaine

Career Span: 1950 – 1962

You may not have heard of him before, but the above statistics tell you exactly just how good Just Fontaine was in his heyday. Only three players have scored more goals at World Cups than the French forward after he registered 13 in the competition. He only made 21 appearances for his national team across a seven-year career – international matches were far less frequent during the 1950s – but stillmanaged to score 30 times.

In 1958, he scored a staggering 18 goals in just 12 France matches, with the diminutive and ruthless striker finishing third at the World Cup and in the Ballon d’Or vote that year.

11

Antoine Griezmann

Career Span: 2009 – present

Euro 2016 may not have ended as expected, but it is sure to remain indelibly etched in the memories of the French for many years to come. A tournament marked by one player, Antoine Griezmann, who dazzled the world with his talent. Having enjoyed a great season with Atletico Madrid, the versatile striker also made his mark on the international stage.

Top scorer (six goals) and best player of the tournament, he scored two memorable braces, in the round of 16 against Ireland (2-1), then in the semi-final against favourites Germany (0-2), sending millions of French fans across the country into raptures, before then playing an understated role in France’s 2018 World Cup triumph.

10

Eric Cantona

Career Span: 1983 -1997

Eric Cantona would feature higher on this list if he’d achieved more with the international team. Unfortunately, however, his big personality meant his France career came to a premature end in 1997, just before they won the World Cup. He fell out with Henri Michel, got back in under Michel Platini and then lost his spot in the team after his ban on football following his infamous karate kick for Manchester United vs Crystal Palace.

Even so, he still managed an impressive 20 goals in 45 games. And as he achieved plenty in England with the Red Devils – as well as winning silverware with Auxerre, Marseille, Montpellier, and Leeds before that – he will go down as one of the finest players in football history. If only he didn’t retire so young.

9

Marcel Desailly

Career Span: 1986-2006

Marcel Desailly was one of the finest defensive-minded footballers to ever grace the sport. Able to play as either a centre-back or a defensive midfielder, the Frenchman picked up over 100 caps for his country – starting every game as they won the World Cup and the Euros.

His club career wasn’t bad either, with Desailly picking up a Champions League trophy in 1993 with Marseille and then another with AC Milan the following year. He also won honours Serie on two occasions, as well as the FA Cup with Chelsea – proving to be one of the finest Premier League defenders of all time – before heading to Qatar to end his career in the mid-2000s.

8

Didier Deschamps

Career Span: 1985 – 2001

Another Frenchman with over 100 caps for his country, Didier Deschamps’ playing career was littered with success, winning the Champions League twice (with Marseille and Juventus), as well as three Serie A titles and an FA Cup in England with France.

The current national team manager was named French Player of the Year 1996 and then captained his side to glory at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000, before later coaching his side to football’s biggest prize in 2018. Very few have contributed as much to French football as Deschamps.

7

Patrick Vieira

Career Span: 1993 – 2011

Patrick Vieira was a younger part of that World Cup-winning side of 2000 (grabbing an assist in the final), before winning the Euros two years later – picking up two assists, as he played in every game at the tournament. For club and country, central midfielders don’t get much more dominant.

Mixing grace with physicality, the Frenchman was the beating heart of Arsene Wenger’s glorious Arsenal team, captaining the side in their Invincibles era. Up there with the very best to ever play in the Premier League, Vieira also won honours at AC Milan, Inter Milan and Manchester City before retiring.

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6

Lilian Thuram

Career Span: 1991 – 2008

Only Hugo Lloris has more caps than Lilian Thuram, showing just how important the defender was for his national team. Able to operate as both a centre-back and as a right-back, he started and finished all but one game in France 1998, and was similarly important at the Euros two years later.

Named the French Player of the Year 1997, Thuram won honours in Italy with Parma and then Juventus, while also enjoying a few seasons at Barcelona before retiring in 2008. He has also been ranked by fans as the 17th greatest defender in the history of football.

5

Raymond Kopa

Career Span: 1959 – 1967

While not all modern fans will be aware of Raymond Kopa’s playing career, they will recognise his second name. This is because the Kopa Trophy is awarded to the best-performing under-21 player worldwide at the Ballon d’Or ceremony – with Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe past winners.

The accolade was given to him, in part, as he is the only player to have won both the Young Player of the Tournament and Player of the Tournament awards at two different World Cups, doing so in 1954 and 1958 (as France came third) respectively. Kopa was also the winner of the 1958 Ballon d’Or, and won major honours in his home nation and Spain at Reims and Real Madrid.

4

Kylian Mbappe

Career Span: 2015 – Present

There is every chance that by the end of his career, Kylian Mbappe will go down as the greatest French footballer of all time. But at the age of 25 still, he will have to wait a little longer to be given that particular crown. He is also likely to finish up as his nation’s all-time top goalscorer, but currently sits third on the list behind Olivier Giroud and Thierry Henry.

Incredibly, five of Mbappe’s 48 goals have come in World Cup finals. He first netted twice as he powered his nation to glory at Russia 2018 before then scoring three times as France just fell short against Argentina in 2022. Numerous trophies have been accrued at Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain, but he still is waiting to add either a Champions League or Ballon d’Or win to his collection following a move to Real Madrid over the summer.

3

Michel Platini

Career Span: 1972 – 1987

Seeing as Michel Platini, won the Ballon d’Or three times in a row, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, it’s not hard to see why he is regularly included in the conversation when the greatest footballers of all time are discussed. The only reason he doesn’t break into the top two is because he could not add a World Cup win to his European Championship triumph of 1984. But the French Player of the Year for 1976 and 1977 is still one of the finest to ever represent his nation.

He scored in the final as he captained France to their first international trophy and was also, at one stage, their all-time top goalscorer. His most successful playing years were spent in Italy with Juventus but he also won trophies with Nancy and Saint-Etienne.

2

Thierry Henry

Career Span: 1994 – 2014

Thierry Henry was one of the most electric footballers of his generation. The Arsenal icon bagged goal after goal for the Gunners in their most successful era, making himself the greatest player the Premier League has ever seen. He ended his career with a fair few trophies in Spain at Barcelona but also won plenty with France as well.

Another forward who once held the all-time top goalscorer crown, Henry bagged 51 goals at international level, with three coming at the 1998 World Cup and three more coming at the Euros two years later. It takes a special talent to be named French Player of the Year once, but to win it five times takes the ex-Monaco youngster to another level.

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1

Zinedine Zidane

Career Span: 1989 – 2006

Has there ever been a more elegant footballer than Zinedine Zidane? A man for the big occasion – with a winning brace in the 1998 World Cup final, a panenka in the 2006 World Cup final, and a Man of the Match display (and goal) in the Champions League final – the midfielder didn’t have a bad career.

The 1998 Ballon d’Or winner was a joy to behold, delivering one of the greatest individual performances in World Cup history as he schooled Brazil in 2006. With over a century of appearances for France, and countless honours and achievements at Cannes, Bordeaux, Juventus, and Real Madrid, very few could argue against Zidane going down as his nation’s finest-ever footballer. A true legend of the game.

All stats via Transfermarkt as of (21/03/25)