Ribery Biography

Franck Bilal Ribery (born April 7, 1983 in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France) is a French football midfielder who plays for Bundesliga club FC Bayern München.

Club career

After spending the first four years of his career in his home country with four different clubs, Ribery relocated to Turkey in January 2005, signing a three-and-a-half year contract with Galatasaray S.K., with whom he won the 2005 Fortis Turkey Cup by scoring two goals and assisting two others in a 5-1 win in the final against league rivals Fenerbahce SK.

On April 25, 2007, an appeal by Galatasaray against Ribery’s move to Olympique de Marseille was dismissed by the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS), who ruled in a statement that Ribery had terminated his contract with the Turkish club at the end of the 2004-05 season on just grounds, and that Galatasaray was therefore not entitled to any compensation. Ribery had opted out of his deal in May 2005 in order to return to France after having gone over four months without wages. Galatasaray had sought €10 million in compensation from Marseille, and appealed to CAS after FIFA ruled in Ribery’s favor in July 2005.

Ribery has made 68 appearances in all competitions and scored fourteen goals as Marseille finished runner-up to Olympique Lyonnais in the 2006–07 Ligue 1 title race.

On June 7, 2007, Bayern Munich signed Ribery to a four-year deal for a club-record €25 million. Ribery was given the number 7 shirt, which was freed up due to the retirement of club legend Mehmet Scholl at the end of the previous season. He made his team debut one month later, scoring twice in an 18-0 friendly drubbing of Munich youth side FT Gern.

He made his competitive debut for Bayern on July 21, 2007 against Werder Bremen in the first round of the Premiere Ligapokal, scoring twice. He also netted an early goal in Bayern’s 2-0 victory over defending champions VfB Stuttgart in the semifinals, but was unable to play in the final (won by Bayern) due to injury.

At the start of the 2008-09 Bundesliga he earned his title as German footballer of the year by a majorly big margin. Of the 766 votes cast, he earned 224, almost 30% of all votes cast. This is almost double the amount that Michael Ballack got when he got second place.

International Career

Ribery earned his first cap with France in a 1-0 victory over Mexico on May 27, 2006; he started the match but was substituted by David Trezeguet in the 74th minute. He was part of France’s roster for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where he scored one goal. He played in the final where France lost to Italy, and his only shot on goal came in extra time. He scored the only goal in France’s 1-0 win over England on March 26, 2008.

On June 17, 2008, during France’s 2-0 Euro 2008 loss to Italy, Ribery suffered an injury in the eighth minute after rupturing a ligament in his left ankle, and underwent successful surgery in Munich two days later.

Personal life

When Ribery was two years old, he and his family were involved in an automobile accident in Boulogne-sur-Mer after colliding with a truck. Ribery suffered serious facial injuries that resulted in over one hundred stitches and left two long scars down the right side of his face.

He raises his hands to the sky at the start of matches in a move that resembles prayers in Islam. He confirmed his conversion in interviews and assumed the name of Bilal, in reference to Bilal ibn Ribah. Ribery’s wife, Wahiba, is a French national of Algerian descent, and the couple have two daughters, Hizya and Shakinez.

Honours

Fortis Turkey Cup: 2004-05
UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2005
DFB-Ligapokal: 2007
German Cup: 2008
Bundesliga: 2008
World Cup 2006 runner-up: 2006
French Player of the Year: 2007
German Footballer of the Year: 2008

Transfer history