Just Fontaine


Just Louis Fontaine was a French professional footballer who played as a striker. He scored the most goals ever in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup, with thirteen in six matches in the 1958 [FIFA World Cup|1958 tournament]. In March 2004, Pelé named him one of his 125 Greatest Living Footballers at a FIFA Awards Ceremony.

Football career

Born in Marrakech, French Morocco, to a French father and a Spanish mother, Fontaine moved to Casablanca, where he attended the Lycée Lyautey.
Fontaine began his amateur career at USM Casablanca, where he played from 1950 to 1953. Nice recruited him in 1953, and he went on to score 44 goals in three seasons for the club. In 1956, he moved to Stade de Reims, where he teamed up with Raymond Kopa from the 1959–60 season. Fontaine scored 121 goals in six seasons at Stade de Reims. In total, Fontaine scored 165 goals in 200 matches in the Division 1, and won the championship twice, one time in 1958, and the other in 1960. He also took part in the team that got to the 1958–59 European Cup final against Real Madrid, being that season's top scorer with ten goals.
File:Fontaine1958.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Fontaine playing for France at the 1958 FIFA World Cup.
Wearing the blue shirt of France, Fontaine has an even more impressive record. On his debut on 17 December 1953, Fontaine scored a hat trick as France defeated Luxembourg 8–0. In seven years, he scored 30 goals in 21 matches. However, he will best be remembered for his 1958 FIFA World Cup performance, where he scored 13 goals in just six matches – a feat that included putting four past defending champions West Germany. It is also the highest number of goals ever scored by one player at a single World Cup tournament. This tally secured him the Golden Boot., he is tied with Lionel Messi as the fourth-top scorer in FIFA World Cup history, with each of the three ahead of him—Gerd Müller, Ronaldo and Miroslav Klose —having played in at least two tournaments.
Fontaine played his last match in July 1962, being forced to retire early because of a recurring leg injury. He briefly managed the France national team in 1967, but was replaced after only two friendly games, which ended in defeats. As coach of Morocco, he led the Atlas Lions to a third place finish in the 1980 [African Cup of Nations], overseeing the emergence of such players as Badou Zaki, Mohammed Timoumi and Aziz Bouderbala. Morocco reached the final stage of 1982 [FIFA World Cup qualification |1982 World Cup qualification] but were beaten by Cameroon. As sporting director of Paris Saint-Germain, he managed to help promote the club to the first division.

After retirement

Fontaine was named by Pelé as one of the 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. He was chosen as the best French player of the last 60 years by the French Football Federation in the UEFA Jubilee Awards in November 2003. With Eugène N'Jo Léa he founded the National Union of [Professional Football Players] in 1961. He criticized the performance of the French team in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, particularly on the lackluster play of the forwards. Fontaine died in Toulouse, where he had lived for 60 years, on 28 February 2023 at the age of 89.

Career statistics

Club

International

No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
117 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France14–08–01954 FIFA World Cup qualification
217 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France16–08–01954 FIFA World Cup qualification
317 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France17–08–01954 FIFA World Cup qualification
413 March 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France41–12–2Friendly
58 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden61–17–31958 FIFA World Cup
68 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden62–17–31958 FIFA World Cup
78 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden65–37–31958 FIFA World Cup
811 June 1958Arosvallen, Västerås, Sweden71–02–31958 FIFA World Cup
911 June 1958Arosvallen, Västerås, Sweden72–22–31958 FIFA World Cup
1015 June 1958Eyravallen, Örebro, Sweden82–02–11958 FIFA World Cup
1119 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden92–04–01958 FIFA World Cup
1219 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden93–04–01958 FIFA World Cup
1324 June 1958Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden101–12–51958 FIFA World Cup
1428 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden111–06–31958 FIFA World Cup
1528 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden113–16–31958 FIFA World Cup
1628 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden115–26–31958 FIFA World Cup
1728 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden116–36–31958 FIFA World Cup
181 October 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France122–07–1UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
191 October 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France126–17–1UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
205 October 1958Praterstadion, Vienna, Austria132–12–1Friendly
219 November 1958Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France152–22–2Friendly
2211 November 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France171–05–3Friendly
2311 November 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France174–25–3Friendly
2411 November 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France175–25–3Friendly
2513 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France181–05–2UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2613 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France182–05–2UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2713 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France184–25–2UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2817 December 1959Parc des Princes, Paris, France192–14–3Friendly
2916 March 1960Parc des Princes, Paris, France204–06–0Friendly
3016 March 1960Parc des Princes, Paris, France205–06–0Friendly

Honours

Player

Nice
Reims
France
Individual
Morocco