Franck Alain James Leboeuf (born 22 January 1968), commonly known as Frank Leboeuf, is a French actor, sports commentator and former footballer who played as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

. With the France national team, Leboeuf won the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 1 ...

and

UEFA Euro 2000 The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, also known as Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Championship, a football tournament held every four years and organised by UEFA, the sport's governing body in Europe. The finals tournament was ...

as well as a number of domestic trophies, most famously during his five years at Chelsea. Since the conclusion of his playing career, Leboeuf has transitioned to acting, appearing in stage, film productions and is a regular contributor at

ESPN FC ESPN FC (formerly ESPN SoccerNet) is a website and a U.S. television studio program covering soccer that is broadcast daily over the streaming service ESPN+. ESPN FC's origin was a website owned by ESPN Inc. Originally established in 1995 as Soc ...

Club career

Leboeuf was born in

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

and raised in

Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer (, "Saint-Cyr-on-Sea"; Provençal Occitan: ''Sant Ceri'') is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. It is located on the Mediterranean coast, on the departmental bor ...

. He was introduced to football by his father, a former

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

coach, who trained children in the sport. After starting his career in 1986 in the lower divisions of the French leagues, Leboeuf moved to Laval in 1988. In 1991, he moved to

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

and played there until 1996, when he made a switch to English club Chelsea for £2.5m. He played over 200 games for the club and scored 24 goals, mainly from penalties and set pieces. With Chelsea, he won two

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

s, one League Cup, one

Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renamed the UEFA Cup Winne ...

and one

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...

. He left in 2001 for club

, before finishing out his career in

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

. Despite his numerous accolades, Leboeuf never won a first-division title in Europe or the UEFA Champions League.

International career

Leboeuf was capped 50 times for France, scoring four goals. His first two came on 6 September 1995 in a Euro 96 qualifier at home to Azerbaijan, contributing to a 10–0 win, a then-record for France. Although he was mainly a substitute in the 1998 World Cup (started 2 and played in 3 matches out of 7), he stepped in for red carded

Laurent Blanc Laurent Robert Blanc (; born 19 November 1965) is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a centre-back and is the manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad Club (J ...

to play in the final, a 3–0 win against

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, a match in which he man-marked the highly rated striker Ronaldo. In a Euro 2000 qualifier on 9 June 1999, Leboeuf scored the only goal from the penalty spot with five minutes to go as world champions France struggled away to amateurs

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

. He received a winner's medal at the finals in Belgium and the Netherlands, though Blanc and

Marcel Desailly Marcel David Desailly (; 7 September 1968) is a French former professional Association football, footballer, who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. During a successful career at club level, lasting from 1986 to 2006, Desailly won se ...

were the preferred defensive partnership, including in the final. He scored a late winner against co-hosts

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

on 26 May ahead of the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea/Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...

(3–2). Holders France were eliminated in the group stage in a shock, and he retired from the team.

International goals

:''Scores and results list France's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Leboeuf goal.''

Style of play

A cultured

, Leboeuf was noted for his intelligence, composure, and long range passing ability. He also had a powerful long range shot, and was a consistent penalty-taker throughout his career. He took 15 penalties in competitive games for Chelsea, missing just 2 times, and missing only 1 out of his 11 attempts from the spot in the Premier League.

Acting

In 2001, whilst still playing football for Chelsea, Leboeuf had made his first acting appearance in the film '' Taking Sides''. Following his retirement from competitive football, Leboeuf spent two years living in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. During this time he played for amateur team Hollywood United, alongside celebrity team-mates such as

Vinnie Jones Vincent Peter Jones (born 5 January 1965) is an English actor, presenter, and former professional footballer. Jones played professionally as a defensive midfielder from 1984 to 1999, notably for Wimbledon, Leeds United, Sheffield United, C ...

, Steve Jones and

Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (, ; born 31 January 1959) is an Australian actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen he has received several accolades including three AACTA Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Tony Award. For his starring role as Jac ...

. Leboeuf studied at the

Lee Strasberg Institute The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute (originally the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute) is an acting school founded in 1969 by the actor, director, and acting teacher Lee Strasberg. The Institute is located in Union Square on East 15th Str ...

in West Hollywood, keeping a low profile, and won his first acting work as a TV commentator, for a pay cheque totalling $100, which he keeps as a memento. Leboeuf acted in several theatre plays in France, including starring alongside Jean-Francois Garreaud in ''L'intrus'' in 2010 and a role in the play ''Avec Ma Belle Mère et Moi''. In 2014, Leboeuf played a

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

fighter in the World War II film ''Allies'' and a doctor in the Stephen Hawking biopic '' The Theory of Everything''.

Other media

Leboeuf works as a sports commentator and analyst for RMC and

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

in the United States and he writes a column for Chelsea News in the UK. In 2010, he was a contestant on the reality television show '' Koh-Lanta'' in the '' Koh-Lanta, le choc des héros'' special series. He was forced to depart the show after two episodes due to a back injury he had suffered in a car accident shortly before the series commenced. In 2014, Leboeuf made an appearance in the television comedy series '' Nos Chers Voisins'' and began writing a column for '' Téléfoot''. In 2019, Leboeuf competed on the first season of ''Mask Singer'', the French version of the global franchise ''

Masked Singer ''Masked Singer'' is an international music reality game show franchise. It originated from the South Korean program '' The King of Mask Singer'', developed by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation. Format The format features celebrities who perform ...

'', disguised as a peacock.

Personal life

Leboeuf is married to actress Chrislaure Nollet and has two children, Jade and Hugo, from his first marriage to Beatrice. His amateur sporting hobbies include tennis, swimming and boxing. Franck Leboeuf is the cousin of the hotelier Philippe Leboeuf. Following the 1998 World Cup, he was appointed a

Knight of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

in 1998.

Honours

Strasbourg * Division 2 play-offs: 1991–92 *

Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...

runner-up: 1994–95 *

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from , "between" and , " betting pool"),Most precisely, from ( football pool); cf. originally called the International Football Cup, was a summer football competition between European clubs. The competition was dis ...

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

Chelsea *

: 1996–97, 1999–2000 *

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

: 1997–98 *

FA Charity Shield The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier ...

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...

: 1997–98 *

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

Al-Sadd *

Qatar Stars League The Qatar Stars League (; abbreviated as QSL), known as Ooredoo Stars League for sponsorship reasons, is the top level football league in Qatar football league system. Contested by 12 teams, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation wi ...

: 2003–04 Al-Wakrah *

Sheikh Jassim Cup The Sheikh Jassim Cup () is an annual men's super cup competition in Qatari football held between the winner of the Qatar Stars League and the Emir of Qatar Cup. History The inaugural Sheikh Jassim Cup was held in 1977. Prior to the 2014 She ...

: 2004–05 France *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

UEFA European Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

Orders *

: 1998

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leboeuf, Frank 1968 births Living people 1998 FIFA World Cup players 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2002 FIFA World Cup players FIFA World Cup–winning players 21st-century French male actors Al Sadd SC players Al-Wakrah SC players Men's association football central defenders Chelsea F.C. players Knights of the Legion of Honour Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Qatar Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States FIFA Confederations Cup–winning players Footballers from Marseille French expatriate men's footballers French expatriate male actors in the United States French expatriate sportspeople in England French expatriate sportspeople in Qatar French expatriate sportspeople in the United States French men's footballers France men's international footballers French male film actors French male television actors Hollywood United F.C. players Ligue 1 players Male actors from Marseille Olympique de Marseille players Premier League players Qatar Stars League players RC Strasbourg Alsace players Stade Lavallois players UEFA Euro 1996 players UEFA Euro 2000 players European champions for France UEFA European Championship–winning players Association football people awarded knighthoods 20th-century French sportsmen Occitan sportspeople