Youri Raffi Djorkaeff (born 9 March 1968) is a French former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

who played as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

or forward. Throughout his club career, he played for teams in France, Italy, Germany, England, and the United States. At international level, Djorkaeff scored 28 goals in 82 appearances with the French national team between 1993 and 2002. He won the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for t ...

, Euro 2000, and the

2001 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup was the fifth FIFA Confederations Cup and the third to be organised by FIFA. It was also the first in which the original hosts, Saudi Arabia, did not participate (they were the nation who founded the tournament, p ...

, also taking part at

Euro 1996 The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...

and 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 ...

. He is the son of former player Jean Djorkaeff. On hanging up his boots in 2006 and after having played in France, Italy, Germany, United Kingdom and the US, Youri devoted himself to social projects, which eventually led him to establish the Youri Djorkaeff Foundation in 2014. He currently holds the position of CEO of the FIFA Foundation, following his appointment in September 2019.

Early life

Djorkaeff was born in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

, to a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

father of Polish and Kalmyk origin, Jean Djorkaeff, and an Armenian mother, Mary Ohanian, in Lyon.

Club career

Djorkaeff started his career in 1984 with French club Grenoble, before moving to RC Strasbourg in 1989, AS Monaco in 1990, and then Paris Saint-Germain in 1995. In 1994, Djorkaeff led Division 1 in goals with 20. He won the

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

with PSG in

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...

. In 1996, he signed with Italian club

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Inter i ...

. In his first season, he scored 17 goals in 49 appearances across all competitions, scoring 14 goals in 33 Serie A appearances; with his excellent performances, he helped the club to a third–place finish in Serie A, and also reached the UEFA Cup Final, in which Inter were defeated by

Schalke Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North ...

on penalties following a 1–1 draw on aggregate, although Djorkaeff was able to net his spot kick. During the course of the season, he also scored a memorable goal from a bicycle kick in a 3–1 home win against

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council * Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

in the league, on 5 January 1997, which is considered to be one of the greatest goals scored in the club's history. His following season was less successful individually, as he struggled to play well alongside the club's new signing

Ronaldo Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries. People Notable people known as Ronaldo include: As ...

, although collectively Inter finished the season in second place in Serie A and won the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

, defeating

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

3–0 in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

at the

Parc des Princes Parc des Princes () is an all-seater football stadium in Paris, France, in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin and Stade Roland Garros. The stadium, with a seating capacity of 47 ...

. In his third and final season with the team, following the signing of

Roberto Baggio Roberto Baggio (; born 18 February 1967) is an Italian former professional footballer who mainly played as a second striker, or as an attacking midfielder, although he was capable of playing in several offensive positions. He is the former pr ...

, he also struggled to find space in the team, and suffered a further loss of form; moreover, the club eventually finished the season in eighth place, outside of all possible European qualifying spots. In 1999, he transferred to Germany and Kaiserslautern, helping them to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

. Djorkaeff turned many heads when signing with English club

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pik ...

in 2002, but added a lot of class to the team during his three seasons there, resulting in the creation of an international "dream-team" alongside the tricky Nigerian

Jay-Jay Okocha Augustine Azuka Okocha ( ; born 14 August 1973), commonly known as Jay-Jay Okocha, is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played 73 times for the Nigeria national team between 1993 and 2006, scorin ...

, and former

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

midfielder Iván Campo. He was a member of the squad that reached the final of the 2003–04 League Cup. He then transferred to Blackburn Rovers but left the club after playing in only three games. Djorkaeff then signed with the MetroStars of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...

in February 2005, turning down higher paid offers from other countries. He became the first French player to play in MLS and ended the season as the team's MVP with ten goals and seven assists in league play. Youri Djorkaeff takes a corner (cropped)

Youri Djorkaeff takes a corner (cropped)

Djorkaeff announced from the beginning that he would hang-up his boots at the end of 2006 season, and played for the re-branded

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

. On 1 July 2006, he was spotted in the crowd with French fans at the FIFA World Cup quarter-final match between France and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

after telling Red Bulls officials he left the club to attend to "an unexpected, serious family matter in France." Upon his return, he revealed that the purpose of his departure was to be with his sick mother and downplayed watching the World Cup match. He retired from professional football on 29 October 2006.

International career

Djorkaeff accumulated 82 caps and scored 28 goals for

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

at senior level between 1993 and 2002. Other than the two major tournaments he won with the national side – the

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 wa ...

– Djorkaeff also played for his country in

UEFA Euro 1996 The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...

and the

. In the 1998 FIFA World Cup Final in Paris, he set-up

Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached Spanish club Real Madrid and is one of the mos ...

's second goal from a corner in an eventual 3–0 victory over defending champions

Style of play

Nicknamed ''The Snake'', due to his ability to get past defenders and bend the ball, Djorkaeff was a talented

playmaker In association football, a playmaker is a player who controls the flow of the team's play, and is often involved in offensively and defensively playing passing moves which lead to goals, through their vision, technique, ball control, creativi ...

, who usually played as an attacking midfielder, although he was also capable of playing in deeper positions in midfield on occasion – namely as a

central midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

–, or in more attacking roles, as a creative second striker, or even as an outright striker, while he often featured in a wide role on the left flank at international level. An elegant and technically gifted player, he was mainly known for his flair, dribbling skills, and excellent touch on the ball; he was also known for his vision, passing, composure, and class, and possessed a good shot, which enabled him both to score and create goals. He was known for his positional sense and intelligent movement off the ball, as well as his ability to lose his markers with his attacking runs and create space for himself, or provide depth to the team; he was also highly regarded for his accuracy from free kicks and penalties with his right foot. A hard-working player, who was known for his defensive contribution off the ball, he had the ability to link the defence with the attack or drift out wide in a free role in midfield; as such, his playing style and role has been described as that of a "nine and a half," half-way between that of a midfielder and that of a forward, which from a tactical standpoint, however, occasionally made it difficult for managers to find the right position for him on the pitch that best suited his capabilities. Moreover, despite his talent and success, he was also accused of being inconsistent at times in the media.

Personal life

Djorkaeff has a wife, Sophie, and three children: Sacha, Oan and Angelica. Djorkaeff released a singing single called "Vivre dans Ta Lumière", translated to "Living in Your Light" from French. His father, Jean, and younger brother, Micha Djorkaeff, were also professional football players. On 15 November 2012 Djorkaeff hosted Phone-a-thon for Armenian charity held in Europe. The Phoneathon benefits the construction of community centres in villages throughout Nagorno Karabakh and comprehensive agricultural development in Armenia's Tavush Region. In addition, a part of the proceeds will be dedicated to providing urgent aid to the Syrian-Armenian community. During his time in England, Djorkaeff opened a football school in Armenia. After retiring, he became the president of his childhood club in Lyon, Union Generale Armenienne de Decines, in April 2007. Djorkaeff currently also runs the Youri Djorkaeff Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing football programs in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

forward Djorkaeff Reasco was named after Djorkaeff.

Career statistics

Club

International

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

Honours

Monaco * Coupe de France: 1990–91 Paris Saint-Germain * Trophée des Champions: 1995 *

: 1995–96 Inter Milan *

: 1997–98 Bolton Wanderers *

Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by t ...

runner-up: 2003–04 France *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...

: 1998 *

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

: 2000 *

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, CONMEBOL, ...

Individual * Division 1 top scorer: 1993–94 * UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament:

*Pirata d'Oro (Inter Milan Player of the Year): 1997 * FIFA XI: 1997 Orders * Knight of the Legion of Honour: 1998

References

Bibliography

*Youri Djorkaeff, ''Snake'', Paris, Grasset and Fasquelle, 2006, .

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Djorkaeff, Youri 1968 births Living people Footballers from Lyon French people of Kalmyk descent French people of Armenian descent French people of Polish descent French footballers France international footballers French expatriate footballers Grenoble Foot 38 players RC Strasbourg Alsace players AS Monaco FC players Paris Saint-Germain F.C. players Inter Milan players Serie A players Expatriate footballers in Italy 1. FC Kaiserslautern players Bundesliga players Expatriate footballers in Germany Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players New York Red Bulls players Expatriate soccer players in the United States Association football forwards Premier League players Major League Soccer players Expatriate footballers in England FIFA World Cup-winning players FIFA Confederations Cup-winning players 1998 FIFA World Cup players 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2002 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 1996 players UEFA Euro 2000 players UEFA European Championship-winning players Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Ligue 1 players Ligue 2 players French expatriate sportspeople in Germany French expatriate sportspeople in Italy French expatriate sportspeople in England French expatriate sportspeople in the United States Ethnic Armenian sportspeople UEFA Cup winning players Djorkaeff family FIFA officials French expatriate sportspeople in Monaco