EURO 2012
Polandia - Ukraina
Polandia
Yunani
Rusia
Republik Ceko
Belanda
Denmark
Jerman
Portugal
Spanyol
Italia
Republik Irlandia
Kroasia
Ukraina
Swedia
Prancis
Inggris
Thursday, June 3, 2010
France
4:11 PM
|
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation and competes as a member of UEFA. France was one of the four European teams that participated at the inaugural World Cup in 1930 and are one of seven national teams to have won the competition, which they did in 1998 when they hosted the Cup. They defeated Brazil 3–0 in the final. France and England share the record of having one World Cup victory. France has also won two UEFA European Football Championships, winning the first in 1984, led by Ballon d'Or winner Michel Platini, and the most recent in 2000, led by FIFA World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane. Following France's 2001 Confederations Cup victory, they became, along with Argentina, the only national teams to win the three most important men's titles organized by FIFA: the FIFA World Cup, the FIFA Confederations Cup, and the Olympic Tournament. France currently share a competitive rivalry with neighbors Italy, whom they first contested in 1910. The rivalry laid dormant for awhile, but re-ignited following the controversial circumstances surrounding Zinedine Zidane's sending-off in the 2006 World Cup final. HistoryThe France national football team was created in 1904 around the same time of FIFA's foundation on 21 May 1904 and contested its first official international match on 1 May 1904 against Belgium, in Brussels, which ended in a 3–3 draw. The following year, on 12 February 1905, France contested their first ever home match against Switzerland. The match was played at the Parc des Princes in front of 500 supporters. France won the match 1–0 with the only goal coming from Gaston Cyprès. Prior to the FIFA World Cup, the country's major international competition was the Summer Olympics. At the 1908 Summer Olympics, France sent two teams to the competition, a rare occurrence, due to a disagreement between FIFA and the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques (USFSA), the country's sports union. At the competition, both teams struggled with France B (USFSA) losing in the opening round and France A (FIFA) losing in the following round. Following the Olympics, on 9 May 1908, the French Interfederal Committee (CFI), a rival organization to the USFSA, ruled that FIFA would now be responsible for the club's appearances in forthcoming Olympics Games and not the USFSA. The USFSA disagreed, but due to disorganization in later years, became semi-affiliated with the CFI in 1913. In 1919, the CFI transformed themselves into the French Football Federation. In 1921, the USFSA finally merged with the French Football Federation. In July 1930, France appeared in the inaugural FIFA World Cup, held in Uruguay..... | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
In their first-ever World Cup match, France defeated Mexico 4–1 at the Estadio Pocitos in Montevideo. Lucien Laurent became notable in the match as he scored not only France's first World Cup goal, but the first goal in World Cup history. France later lost 1–0 to fellow group stage opponents Argentina and Chile resulting in the team bowing out in the group stage. The following year saw the first selection of a black player to the national team. Raoul Diagne, who was of Senegalese descent, earned his first cap on 15 February in a 2–1 defeat to Czechoslovakia. Diagne later played with the team at the 1938 FIFA World Cup, alongside Larbi Benbarek, who was the first player of North African origin to play for the national team. At the 1934 FIFA World Cup, France suffered elimination in the opening round. The group stage used in the first World Cup was discarded in favor of a straight knockout tournament. In the opening round match, against Austria, France lost 3–2 following extra time goals from Anton Schall and Josef Bican. On the team's return to Paris, they were greeted as heroes by a crowd of over 4,000 supporters. Two years later, on 24 February 1936, Gaston Barreau was officially installed as the team's first manager. Barreau, who headed a player selection committee which officially headed the team, had unofficially managed the team since 1919. France hosted the 1938 FIFA World Cup and reached the quarter-finals before losing 3–1 to the defending champions Italy, who later went on to defend their title. Due to the development of World War II, national team play was put on hold, returned, then was put on hold for a second time before finally returning on a permanent basis following the conclusion of the war. The first suspension of play lasted from 29 January 1940 until 8 March 1942 when France returned to play losing 2–0 to Switzerland. France contested one more match before play was suspended again on 16 March 1942. After over two and a half years of dormancy, France returned to play on Christmas Eve 1944 defeating Belgium 3–1 in Paris. The 1950s saw France handed its first Golden Generation composed of players such as Just Fontaine, Raymond Kopa, Jean Vincent, Robert Jonquet, Maryan Wisnieski, Thadée Cisowski, and Armand Penverne. At the 1958 FIFA World Cup, France reached the semi-finals losing to Brazil, who won the match 5–2, courtesy of a hat trick from Pelé. In the third place match, France defeated West Germany 6–2 with Fontaine recording four goals, which brought his goal tally in the competition to 13, a World Cup record. The record still stands today. France hosted the inaugural UEFA European Football Championship in 1960 and, for the second straight international tournament, reached the semi-finals. In the round, France faced Yugoslavia and were shocked 5–4 despite being up 4–2 heading into the 75th minute. In the third place match, France were defeated 2–0 by the Czechoslovakians. The 1960s and 70s saw France decline significantly playing under several different managers and failing to qualify for numerous international tournaments. Under Henri Guérin, France failed to qualify for the 1962 FIFA World Cup and the 1964 European Nations' Cup. The team did return to major international play following qualification for the 1966 FIFA World Cup. The team lost in the group stage portion of the tournament. Guérin was fired following the World Cup. He was replaced by José Arribas and Jean Snella, who worked as caretaker managers in dual roles. The two only lasted four matches and were replaced by former international Just Fontaine, who only lasted two. Louis Dugauguez succeeded Fontaine and, following his early struggles in qualification for the 1970 FIFA World Cup, was fired. Dugauguez was replaced by Georges Boulogne, who couldn't get the team to the World Cup. Boulogne was later fired following failure to qualify for the 1974 FIFA World Cup. Boulogne also failed to get the team to UEFA Euro 1972. He was replaced by the Romanian Stefan Kovacs, who became the first and, to this day, only international manager to ever manage the national team. Kovács also turned out to be a disappointment failing to qualify for the 1974 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 1976. After two years in charge, he was sacked and replaced with Michel Hidalgo. 
Under Hidalgo, France flourished, mainly due to the accolades of playmaker Michel Platini, who, alongside Jean Tigana, Alain Giresse, and Luis Fernández formed the "carré magique" ("Magic Square"), which would haunt opposing defenses beginning at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, where France reached the semi-finals setting up a showdown with their rivals, West Germany. The semi-final match-up is considered one of the greatest matches in World Cup history and was marred with controversy. France eventually lost the match on penalties 5–4. France earned their first major international honor two years later, winning UEFA Euro 1984, which they hosted. Under the leadership of Platini, who scored a tournament-high nine goals, France defeated Spain 2–0 with Platini and Bruno Bellone scoring the goals. Following the Euro triumph, Hidalgo departed the team and was replaced by former international Henri Michel. France later completed the hat trick when they won gold at the 1984 Summer Olympics football tournament and, a year later, defeated Uruguay 2–0 to win the Artemio Franchi Trophy, an early precursor to the FIFA Confederations Cup. In a span of a year, France were holders of three of the four major international trophies. At the 1986 FIFA World Cup, France were favorites to win the competition, and, for the second consecutive World Cup, reached the semi-finals where they faced West Germany. Again, however, they lost. A 4–2 victory over Belgium gave France third place. A year later, Platini retired from both club and international football. In 1988, the French Football Federation opened the Clairefontaine National Football Institute. Its opening ceremony was attended by then-President of France, François Mitterrand. Five months after Clairefontaine's opening, manager Henri Michel was fired and was replaced by Michel Platini, who failed to get the team to the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Platini did lead the team to UEFA Euro 1992 and, despite going on an impressive 19-match unbeaten streak prior to the competition, suffered elimination in the group stage. A week after the completion of the tournament, Platini stepped down as manager and was replaced by his assistant Gérard Houllier. Under Houllier, France and its supporters experienced a heartbreaking meltdown after having qualification to the 1994 FIFA World Cup all but secured with two matches to go, which were against last place Israel and Bulgaria. In the match against Israel, France were upset 3–2 and, in the Bulgaria match, suffered an astronomical 2–1 defeat following a monumental and costly mistake by midfielder David Ginola in the last minute of play. The public outcry, following the defeat, led to the firing of Houllier. His assistant Aimé Jacquet was given his post. 
Under Jacquet, the national team experienced its triumphant years. The squad composed of Didier Deschamps, Laurent Blanc, Emmanuel Petit, Marcel Desailly, and Bixente Lizarazu that failed to reach the 1994 FIFA World Cup were joined by influential youngsters Lilian Thuram, Zinédine Zidane, Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, Claude Makélélé, and David Trezeguet. The team started off well reaching the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 1996 where they lost 6–5 on penalties to the Czech Republic. After the competition, coach Jacquet adopted a very defensive strategy, which was often derided by supporters. The press also began to attack the team manager, calling his methods "Paleolithic," and claiming that the team had no hope in winning the 1998 FIFA World Cup, which would be hosted in their home country. However, despite the constant criticism, Jacquet and his strategy led the team to World Cup glory defeating Brazil 3–0 in the final at the Stade de France. Jacquet stepped down after the country's World Cup triumph and was succeeded by assistant Roger Lemerre who guided them through UEFA Euro 2000. Led by FIFA World Player of the Year Zidane, France defeated Italy 2–1 in the final. Trezeguet scored the golden goal in extra time after Sylvain Wiltord drew the match in the fifth minute of injury time. The victory gave the team the distinction of being the first national team to hold both the World Cup and Euro titles since West Germany did so in 1974, and it was also the first time that a reigning World Cup winner went on to capture the Euro. Following the result, France were inserted to the prestigious number one spot in the FIFA World Rankings. France failed to maintain that pace in subsequent tournaments. Although, the team won the Confederations Cup in 2001, France suffered a stunning goalless first round elimination at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. One of the greatest shocks in World Cup history saw France condemned to a 1–0 defeat to debutantes Senegal in the opening game of the tournament. After France finished bottom of the group, Lemerre was dismissed and was replaced by Jacques Santini. A full strength team started out strongly in UEFA Euro 2004, but they were upset in the quarter-finals by the eventual winners Greece. Santini resigned as coach and Raymond Domenech was picked as his replacement. 
France struggled in the early qualifiers for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. This prompted Domenech to persuade members Makélélé, Thuram, and Zidane out of international retirement to help the national team qualify, which they accomplished following a convincing 4–0 win over Cyprus on the final day of qualifying. The team was greeted with modest expectations as it entered the tournament and began slowly drawing with both Switzerland and the Korea Republic in their first two matches. Following a respectable 2–0 win over Togo, France found their form and advanced all the way to the final defeating the likes of Spain, Brazil, and Portugal along the way. At home, when news came of France's victory over Portugal in the semi-finals, there were mass celebrations at the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe. France took on Italy in the final and despite controversial disruptions in extra time, France failed to get on the score-sheet and Italy eventually won the penalty shoot-out 5–3 to be crowned champions of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. France started its qualifying round for UEFA Euro 2008 strong and qualified for the tournament, despite two shocking defeats to Scotland. Despite high expectations from supporters, France bowed out during the group stage portion of the tournament after having been placed in the group of death. France's performance at Euro 2008 effectively marked the end of its golden era with Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry remaining with the team following the uneventful Euro performance. Despite pressure from supporters and world media, alike, to fire Domenech, the federation retained him as manager. Just like the team's previous World Cup qualifying campaign, the 2010 campaign got off to a disappointing start with the France suffering disastrous losses and earning uninspired victories. France eventually finished second in the group and earned a spot in the UEFA play-offs against the Republic of Ireland for a place in South Africa. In the first leg, France defeated the Irish 1–0 and in the second leg procured a 1–1 draw, via controversial circumstances, to qualify for the World Cup. Home stadium
During France's early run of existence, the team's national stadium alternated between the Parc des Princes in Paris and the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir in Colombes. France also hosted matches at the Stade Pershing, Stade de Paris, and the Stade Buffalo, but to a minimal degree. As the years moved forward, France began hosting matches outside the city of Paris hosting matches at such venues as the Stade Marcel Saupin in Nantes, the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, the Stade de Gerland in Lyon, and the Stade de la Meinau in Strasbourg, to name a few. Following the renovation of the Parc des Princes in 1972, which made the stadium the largest in terms of attendance, France moved into the venue permanently. The team still hosted friendly matches and minor FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Football Championship qualification matches at other venues. In 1998, the Stade de France was inaugurated as France's national stadium ahead of the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Located in Saint-Denis, a Parisian suburb, the stadium has an all-seater capacity of 81,338. France's first match at the stadium was played on 28 January 1998 against Spain. France won the match 1–0 with Zinedine Zidane scoring the lone goal. Since that match, France has used the stadium for almost every major home game. Media coverageThe national team currently has a broadcasting agreement with TF1 Group, who control the country's main national TV channel, TF1. The current agreement was set to expire following the 2010 FIFA World Cup. On 18 December 2009, the Federal Council of the French Football Federation agreed to extend its exclusive broadcasting agreement with the channel. The new deal grants the channel exclusive broadcast rights for the matches of national team, which include friendlies and international games for the next four seasons beginning in August 2010 and ending in June 2014. TF1 will also have extended rights, notably on the Internet, and may also broadcast images of the national team in its weekly program, Téléfoot. The federation will receive €45 million a season, a €10 million decrease from the €55 million they received from the previous agreement reached in 2006. Kit
The France national team utilizes a tricolour system, composed of colors blue, red, and white. The team's three colors originate from the national flag of France, known as the drapeau tricolore. France have brandished the colors since their first official international match against Belgium in 1904. Since the team's inception, France normally wear blue shirts, white shorts, and red socks at home, while, when on the road, the team utilizes an all-white combination or wear red shirts, blue shorts, and blue socks with the former being the most current. Between the years 1909–1914, France wore a white shirt with blue stripes, white shorts, and red socks. In a 1978 World Cup match against Hungary in Mar del Plata, both teams arrived at Estadio José María Minella with white kits, so France played in green-and-white striped shirts borrowed from Club Atlético Kimberley. Beginning in 1972, France reached an agreement with German sports apparel manufacturer Adidas to be the team's kit provider. Over the next 38 years, the two would maintain a healthy relationship with France winning UEFA Euro 1984, the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and UEFA Euro 2000 while wearing the brand's famous tricolour three stripes. On 22 February 2008, the French Football Federation announced that they were ending their partnership with Adidas and signing with the American manufacturer Nike, effective 1 January 2011. The unprecedented deal is valued at €320 million over seven years (2011–2018) making France's blue shirt the most expensive ever in the history of football. NicknameFrance is often referred to by the media and supporters as Les Bleus (The Blues), which is the nickname associated with all of France's international sporting teams due to the blue shirts each team incorporates. The team is also referred to as Les Tricolores or L'Equipe Tricolore (The Tri-color Team) due to the team's utilization of the country's national colors: red, blue, and white. During the 1980s, France earned the nickname the "Brazilians of Europe" mainly due to the accolades of the "carré magique" ("Magic Square"), who were anchored by Michel Platini. Led by coach Michel Hidalgo, France exhibited an inspiring, elegant, skillful, and technically advanced offensive style of football, which was strikingly similar to their South American counterparts. Representing multi-ethnic FranceThe French national football team has long reflected the ethnic diversity of the country. The first black player playing in the national team was Raoul Diagne in 1931, the son of the first African elected to the French National Assembly, Blaise Diagne. In the 1950s, the first French national team reaching international success with a semi-final at the World Cup 1958 already included many sons of immigrants such as Raymond Kopa, Roger Piantoni, Maryan Wisnieski and Bernard Chiarelli. This tradition continued through the 1980s, when such successful players as Michel Platini, Jean Tigana, Luis Fernández, Manuel Amoros or Eric Cantona all had foreign-born parents. During the 1990s, the team was widely celebrated as an example of the modern multicultural French ideal. On the 2006 French national team, 17 of the 23 players were members of racial minorities, including many of the most prominent players. The team featured players born in France's overseas departments and others who were immigrants or the children of immigrants from former French colonies. Zinédine Zidane was born in Marseille to Algerian immigrants. Vikash Dhorasoo — the first French player of Indo-Mauritian origin – played in the 2006 World Cup. Meanwhile, several players are of African and West Indian origin. Patrick Vieira immigrated as a child from Senegal and Claude Makélélé did likewise from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Both Bafétimbi Gomis and Bacary Sagna have dual French-Senegalese nationality. Lilian Thuram is from France's overseas department of Guadeloupe. Thierry Henry is the son of parents born in Guadeloupe and Martinique, while Louis Saha, Sylvain Wiltord, and Pascal Chimbonda all have parents who hail from Guadeloupe. Florent Malouda was born in French Guiana. Similarly, current starlets like Karim Benzema, Samir Nasri, and Hatem Ben Arfa were born to immigrant families from Algeria and Tunisia. The multiracial makeup of the team has at times provoked controversy. In recent years, critics on the far right of the French political spectrum have taken issue with the proportional underrepresentation of white Frenchmen on the team. National Front politician Jean-Marie Le Pen protested in 1998 that the Black, Blanc, Beur team that won the World Cup did not look sufficiently French. In 2002, led by Ghanaian-born Marcel Desailly, the French team unanimously publicly appealed to the French voting public to reject the presidential candidacy of Le Pen and instead return President Jacques Chirac to office in a landslide. In 2006, Le Pen also resumed his criticism, charging that coach Raymond Domenech had selected too many black players. In 2005, French philosopher Alain Finkielkraut caused a controversy by remarking to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that despite its earlier slogan, "the French national team is in fact black-black-black," adding "France is made fun of all around Europe because of that." He later excused himself for this comment, which he declared was not meant to be offensive. The Zidane-Materazzi headbutt incident in the 2006 World Cup final and its aftermath served as a symbol for the larger issue of Europe's struggle to integrate its non-white immigrant population: even though both players denied it, international media speculated for days about the presence of a racist element in the exchange, observing that the Italian team contained no ethnic minorities. The national team's overall impact on France's efforts to integrate its minorities and come to terms with its colonial past has been mixed, however. In 2001, France played a friendly match in the Stade de France, site of its 1998 World Cup triumph, against Algeria. It was France's first meeting with its former colony, with whom it had fought a war from 1954–1962, and it proved controversial. France's national anthem, La Marseillaise, was booed by Algerian supporters before the game, and following a French goal that made the score 4–1 in the second half, spectators ran onto the field of play and caused the game to be suspended. It was never resumed. Current squadThe 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Caps and goals as of 4 June 2010, subsequent to the friendly match against China.
Recent call-ups
Results2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
Friendly
2010 FIFA World Cup
Friendly
UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
Friendly
UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
Friendly
UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
Last updated: 28 March 2010 Coaching staff
Competitive record
Titles
Minor titles
Individual awardsIn addition to team victories, players are awarded individual awards at FIFA and UEFA competitions. Below are the French players who have claimed awards at major tournaments organized by the two organizations. PlayersMost capped French playersStill active national team players are highlighted 
Last updated: 4 June 2010 Top France goalscorersStill active national team players are highlighted 
Last updated: 4 June 2010 ManagersPrior to 1964, French football players were managed by a selection committee with Gaston Barreau, head of committee, acting as the unofficial selector and manager of the team until 1945. Other notable members of the committee included Gabriel Hanot, Alex Thépot, and Georges Verriest, among many others. Under the watch of the committee, several managers headed the national team prior to Henri Guérin being officially installed as the national team's first manager in 1964 after the French Football Federation eliminated the selection committee. While heading the selection committee of the national team, Barreau oversaw the team in 197 matches.
1Managerial career as head of selection committee. Team was sometimes trained by physical trainers and coached by assistants. T. Griffiths coached the team in 1924, while Englishman Paul Farmer coached the team at the 1928 Summer Olympics. Fellow Englishman Sid Kimpton coached the team for a portion of 1934 and 1935–36. Previous squads
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0 Responses to “France”
Post a Comment