Twenty-four years later, a Frenchman is (very) on track to be crowned Ballon d'Or.
In all likelihood, Karim Benzema should succeed this Monday evening to Zinedine Zidane.
For the occasion,
Le Figaro Sport
takes you back to the six French victories since the creation of the trophy in 1956.
To discover
Messi sacred, Benzema 4th: the complete list of the Ballon d'Or 2021
Ballon d'Or: winners, results, complete ranking...
Pioneer Raymond Kopa
It didn't take long for a Frenchman to win it.
In 1958, two after its creation, Raymond Kopa was awarded the Ballon d'Or.
Winner of the Champions Cup - the ancestor of the Champions League - with Real Madrid and third in the World Cup with the Blues, the attacking midfielder is well ahead of the German striker of Rot-Weiss Essen Helmut Rahn and his team partner of France, author of thirteen goals during the World Cup, Just Fontaine.
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Despite the still unequaled feat of the Stade de Reims striker, it is the Madrid player who leads the French attacking sector during the World Cup, as he wanted to remind So Foot in 2015: "
Those who gave me designated [Ballon d'Or, editor's note] are intelligent.
It's not because the guy scores goals that he is necessarily the best.
I think I helped him a bit, not alone, but I was leading the attack.
And I don't think Fontaine had any complaints.
I even think he could have scored more goals
,” he explained.
The following year, Raymond Kopa did not retain his title but took second place, behind his club teammate Alfredo Di Stéfano.
SEE ALSO -
Raymond Kopa, the legend of Real Madrid
Michel Platini, triple winner
Among the players who have dominated world football, Michel Platini has a special place.
Behind the untouchables Lionel Messi - seven crowns - and Cristiano Ronaldo - titled five times -, the French playmaker is part of the (very) closed circle, with Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten, triple winners of the Ballon d'Or.
The player who worked for AS Nancy-Lorraine and AS Saint-Etienne even managed the feat of winning it three times in a row.
In 1983, with a marvelous but unfortunate campaign in the European Cup of Champions Clubs - defeat (1-0) in the final against Hamburg SV - and a coronation in the Italian Cup, Michel Platini was obvious.
It is logically rewarded, relegating its competitors, in this case the
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He retained, without discussion, his title the following year after a crazy year: Italian champion and winner of both the European Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Super Cup with Juventus Turin and winner of the European Championship with the France team (scorer in the final).
In 1985, he scored the treble after giving the Old Lady the first European Cup of Champions in its history by scoring the only goal in the final against Liverpool FC.
Simply exceptional.
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Jean-Pierre Papin, first “Franco-French” victory
A first for French football.
After a remarkable 1990-1991 season on the collective level with Olympique de Marseille - winner of the French championship, finalist of the Coupe de France and the European Cup of champion clubs - and as much on the individual level - top scorer of the French first division, the Coupe de France and the biggest European competition -, Jean-Pierre Papin is logically acclaimed for the Ballon d'Or.
He easily won the supreme individual award ahead of the Yugoslavs of Red Star Belgrade, the C1 winning club, Dejan Savićević and Darko Pančev and the German of Inter Milan Lothar Matthäus.
What is so special about his coronation is that
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The obvious Zinedine Zidane
Who else but him?
Already Italian champion, and sad finalist of the Champions League against Real Madrid (0-1), Zinedine Zidane took advantage of the 1998 World Cup, in France, to impose himself as obvious for the Ballon d' Gold.
The playmaker of the France team has marked - it is the case to say it - the international competition of its imprint, in spite of a difficult start, by registering a double of the head in final against Brazil (3-0 ).
It was therefore no surprise that “Zizou” crushed the competition that year, beating (very) well before the Croatian of Real Madrid Davor Šuker and the Brazilian of Inter Milan Ronaldo.
Read alsoZidane at the head of the Blues?
"The place is not free", recalls Deschamps
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