In the long and storied history of soccer, France stands tall as one of the sport’s elite nations.
Having won a total of nine major honors—including two FIFA World Cups, two European Championships, and one UEFA Nations League—Les Bleus are, alongside Germany, Europe’s joint most-decorated national team.
Winning so many trophies doesn't happen by chance. It comes through a combination of elite management, world-class development infrastructure, and, of course, some serious talent on the pitch.
From wily wingers to sublime scorers, and from dominant defenders to poetic playmakers, France has produced more than its fair share of generational talent. In fact, it’s produced some of the greatest players ever to grace the beautiful game.
With that in mind, here are France's 10 greatest-ever players, in our humble opinion, based on their international legacies, club achievements, and ability.
10. Eric Cantona
Eric Cantona was a true soccer maverick.
Whether it was nonchalantly lobbing opposition goalkeepers from the edge of the box or infamously kung-fu kicking fans who jeered him in the stands, the Frenchman was always unpredictable—making him both thrilling to watch and a nightmare for defenders to handle.
Regarded as one of Manchester United's greatest-ever players, Cantona's silky skills helped the Red Devils lift four Premier League titles and two FA Cups during the 1990s. However, due to a combination of limited quality around him and a notorious suspension that derailed his career, he never got the chance to showcase his full potential for France, failing to ever appear in a World Cup.
It's a real shame, because the world deserved to see Cantona at his best, and if that had happened, he might have ranked even higher on this list.
9. Just Fontaine
Just Fontaine is, alongside Lionel Messi, the joint fourth-highest scorer in World Cup history with 13 goals—remarkably, all scored in a single tournament in 1958.
Though his heroics weren’t enough to guide France to the trophy, his record-breaking haul remains the most goals ever scored at a single World Cup. Even if someone manages to surpass it one day, Fontaine's place in soccer history is already well and truly cemented.
But Fontaine wasn’t just prolific in a France shirt. He also bagged 258 goals during a relatively brief but brilliant club career, winning four French league titles and several other honors with Nice and Stade de Reims, and twice finishing as Ligue 1’s top scorer.
8. N'Golo Kante
N'Golo Kante is the textbook definition of a manager's dream.
Off the pitch, he's as low maintenance as they come—famously turning up to training in a Mini Cooper while his teammates rolled in behind the wheels of sports cars. No drama, no noise, just football.
On the pitch, though, he was all action. During his prime, Kanté never stopped running—breaking up play with tackles and interceptions, constantly closing down space, and generally making life miserable for anyone trying to play against him.
So relentless was his engine that Claudio Ranieri, his manager during Leicester’s title-winning season, once joked: “One day, I’m going to see you cross the ball, and then finish the cross with a header yourself.”
7. Marcel Desailly
When it comes to central defenders, few have ever been as solid or dependable as Marcel Desailly. They didn’t call him “The Rock” for nothing.
Powerful in the tackle, strong in the air, and smart in his positioning, Desailly combined raw physicality with an underrated ability to read the game and distribute the ball. He was the backbone of every team he played for—and the former Marseille, Chelsea and AC Milan star won just about everything there was to win.
For France, he was a key figure in the golden generation that lifted the 1998 World Cup and followed it up with the European Championship in 2000, while at club level, Desailly made history by becoming the first player ever to win back-to-back Champions League titles with different teams.
He first won it with Marseille in 1993, helping them beat Milan in the final. That summer, Milan signed him—and by the end of the following season, he was a European champion again, scoring in their 4-0 demolition of Barcelona in the 1994 final.
6. Patrick Vieira
Patrick Vieira was the complete central midfielder.
A towering presence at 6'4", the Frenchman had it all—crunching tackles, key interceptions in defense, powerful runs that left defenders in his wake, and the ability to score goals when it mattered most. His ability to control the middle of the park made him a dominating force on both ends of the pitch.
During his glittering career, Vieira won three Premier League titles with Arsenal, five Serie A titles—one with AC Milan and four with Inter—along with the World Cup and European Championships with France.
While his trophy haul is impressive, it still doesn't fully capture just how good Vieira was. At the peak of his powers, he would have walked—more accurately, run—into any team in the world, and he’d probably still do the same today.
5. Lilian Thuram
"No one wants to be marked by Thuram. They know the game is already halfway lost."
Those words from former France international Vincent Candela say it all about Lilian Thuram—France’s most-capped player, once dubbed the “Warrior-Philosopher.”
A rare combination of grace on the ball, grit off it, and elite football intelligence, Thuram was one of the most respected defenders of his era, and in many ways, years ahead of his time. He had the technical ability and tactical awareness to thrive in today’s possession-based, positionally fluid systems.
Starting out as a right-back in the iconic Parma side of the late 1990s—alongside names like Juan Sebastián Verón and Hernán Crespo—Thuram later transitioned to center back, winning major honors with both Juventus and Barcelona. Meanwhile, for France, he was a cornerstone of the legendary team that won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.
4. Kylian Mbappe
Seven Ligue 1 titles, a World Cup (plus four goals scored across two finals) and over 350 goals for club and country––Kylian Mbappé’s résumé is downright terrifying when you remember he’s only just entering his prime.
Now in his mid-twenties, both physically and mentally at the peak of his powers, and leading the line for Real Madrid—arguably the biggest club in world football—Mbappé looks set to define an era. What comes next feels inevitable: plenty more goals (he’s already lighting it up at the Bernabéu), a long-awaited first Champions League title, and almost certainly a Ballon d’Or or two if his trajectory continues.
He’s already secured his place in French soccer history. By the time he’s done, he might just stand alone at the very top.
3. Thierry Henry
One word that springs to mind when thinking of Thierry Henry is classy.
A Rolls-Royce of a player, Henry oozed elegance in everything he did—whether it was gliding past defenders with ease, playing delicate one-twos on the edge of the box, or curling the ball into the far corner with one of his signature open-footed finishes that have since become Premier League folklore.
The talisman of an Arsenal side that dominated English football in the early 2000s—and famously went unbeaten in the league during the 2003-04 season—Henry scored 226 goals for the Gunners, many of them jaw-dropping in both technique and execution.
But he wasn’t just a Premier League icon. At Barcelona, despite his immense talent, Henry was often asked to play out wide to accommodate the likes of Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto’o. He never complained. He simply adapted, contributed, and quietly played a key role in Barça’s success, including their famous 2008-09 treble-winning season.
Like we said: classy.
2. Michel Platini
Before becoming the disgraced former UEFA president—banned from football for eight years over ethics breaches—Michel Platini was one of the most celebrated players of his generation. And despite his fall from grace off the pitch, his legacy on it remains untouched.
A graceful and skillful midfielder who could weave through defenders with the precision of a master craftsman, Platini was as much a creator as he was a finisher. Known for his sharp vision, silky touch, and lethal instinct in front of goal, he racked up 354 goals during his career—a remarkable feat for a midfielder.
One of only five players in history to win three or more Ballon d’Ors, Platini enjoyed domestic success with both Saint-Étienne and Juventus, but his crowning achievement came with France at the 1984 European Championships, where he scored nine goals in just five matches to lead Les Bleus to their first-ever major international title.
1. Zinedine Zidane
Nobody has ever, nor likely will ever, do it like Zinedine Zidane.
A beast with ballerina's feet, Zidane was a paradox—powerful yet graceful, effortless yet full of action, gentle yet fiercely competitive. He was a midfield powerhouse who made the beautiful game look just that: beautiful, as well as deceptively easy.
Such an enigma was he that a film was made about him—"Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait"—in which cameras simply followed him around the pitch during a Real Madrid game, trying to capture the magic of his every move.
And the game served as a perfect encapsulation of Zidane himself. Classy pirouettes? Check. A brilliant assist where he danced through two defenders and floated a ball perfectly onto Ronaldo’s head from just outside the box? Check. Sent off in the final moments for hitting an opponent in the face in anger? Oh, you bet.
READ MORE OF SPORTS ILLUSTRATED'S SOCCER RANKINGS
This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Best French Soccer Players of All Time: Ranking the Top 10.
