Just Fontaine


Just Louis Fontaine is a French retired professional footballer. A prolific forward, he is best known for scoring the most goals in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup, with 13 in six matches in 1958. In 2004, Pelé named him one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at a FIFA Awards Ceremony.

Football career

Born in Marrakech to a French father and a Spanish mother, Fontaine moved to Casablanca, where he attended the Lycée Lyautey.
Fontaine began his amateur career at :fr:Union sportive marocaine de Casablanca|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 the Stade de Reims. In total, Fontaine scored 165 goals in 200 matches in the Ligue 1, and twice won the championship; in 1958 and 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 10 goals.
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 was also the highest number of goals ever scored by one player at a single World Cup tournament – a record that stands today. This tally secured him the Golden Boot. As of 2018, he remains 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 injury. He briefly managed the French national team in 1967, but was replaced after only two games, both friendlies that ended in defeats. As coach of Morocco, he led the Atlas Lions to 3rd 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 World Cup qualifying but were beaten by Cameroon.

After retirement

He 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 50 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 playing by the forwards. France were eliminated after group stage, with a draw against Uruguay and losses to Mexico and South Africa.

Career statistics

International

International goals

No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
127 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France1
4–0
8–0
1954 FIFA World Cup qualification
227 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France1
6–0
8–0
1954 FIFA World Cup qualification
327 December 1953Parc des Princes, Paris, France1
7–0
8–0
1954 FIFA World Cup qualification
413 March 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France41–12–2Friendly
58 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden6
1–1
7–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
68 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden6
2–1
7–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
78 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden6
5–3
7–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
811 June 1958Arosvallen, Västerås, Sweden7
1–0
2–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
911 June 1958Arosvallen, Västerås, Sweden7
2–2
2–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
1015 June 1958Eyravallen, Örebro, Sweden82–02–11958 FIFA World Cup
1119 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden9
2–0
4–0
1958 FIFA World Cup
1219 June 1958Idrottsparken, Norrköping, Sweden9
3–0
4–0
1958 FIFA World Cup
1324 June 1958Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden101–12–51958 FIFA World Cup
1428 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden11
1–0
6–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
1528 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden11
3–1
6–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
1628 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden11
5–2
6–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
1728 June 1958Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden11
6–3
6–3
1958 FIFA World Cup
181 October 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France12
2–0
7–1
UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
191 October 1958Parc des Princes, Paris, France12
6–1
7–1
UEFA 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, France17
1–0
5–3
Friendly
2311 November 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France17
4–2
5–3
Friendly
2411 November 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France17
5–2
5–3
Friendly
2513 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France18
1–0
5–2
UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2613 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France18
2–0
5–2
UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2713 December 1959Stade Olympique de Colombes, Colombes, France18
4–2
5–2
UEFA Euro 1960 qualifiers
2817 December 1959Parc des Princes, Paris, France192–14–3Friendly
2916 March 1960Parc des Princes, Paris, France20
4–0
6–0
Friendly
3016 March 1960Parc des Princes, Paris, France20
5–0
6–0
Friendly

Honours

Club

;Stade de Reims