FEATURE | Clairefontaine – the key to Les Bleus’ success | OneFootball

What is the most productive football academy in France? There are a handful of clubs that lay claim to that title. Paris Saint-Germain’s academy has developed a number of France internationals like Kingsley Coman, Adrien Rabiot and Presnel Kimpembe;  Stade Rennais’ La Piverdière has churned out a number of future world-beaters like Ousmane Dembélé, Eduardo Camavinga and Désiré Doué; Olympique Lyonnais have produced their fair share of Les Bleus stars like Rayan Cherki, Karim Benzema and Samuel Umtiti; whilst a variety of La Diagonale products like Maghnes Akliouche, Eliesse Ben Seghir, and Soungoutou Magassa are now thriving in Monaco’s first team. The Principality club also previously developed the likes of Kylian Mbappé and Thierry Henry.

However, it could be argued that the most fruitful youth academy in France isn’t attached to any football club whatsoever: INF Clairefontaine.

Today, France is recognised as one of the top footballing behemoths on the planet. But back in the latter years of the 20th century, they were considered to be minnows in the game. In contrast to neighbouring countries like Italy, England, Germany or Spain, France had never even made it to a major final, let alone win any silverware. It’s why they decided to embark on an ambitious plan to create their own national football academy, with France coach Ștefan Kovács, who was inspired by the former Romanian communist training centres, and France Football Federation (FFF) president Fernand Sastreand, laying the groundwork for its establishment.

Eventually, in 1984, France’s wait for a major title came to an end, with Les Bleus winning the UEFA European Championship as well as the Gold Medal in the Summer Olympics. That same year, the FFF selected Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines as the location for the centre, with construction lasting nearly three years before the academy finally opened its doors in January 1988. One decade later, the facility hosted the French national team, with Les Bleus sealing their first-ever World Cup. France have continued to stake their claim as a major player in the world’s game, reaching the World Cup Final in 2006 and 2022 and the Euros Final in 2016, as well as winning the World Cup and the Euros in 2018 and 2000, respectively.

Henry, Anelka, Saha, and Matuidi among those to graduate

They’ve done so thanks in large part to Clairefontaine, which has welcomed the best young football players from the Île-de-France region (of which Paris is the capital). Stretching 56 hectares of land and featuring 66,000 square metres of turfed grounds, Clairefontaine sits in the valley of Chevreuse in the heart of the Rambouillet forest and boasts various training grounds, a stadium pitch, and an indoor field made of artificial turf, in addition to a medical centre, gym, fitness room, restaurant, cafeteria and three tennis courts. Children between the ages of 13 and 15 are selected to play and train from Monday to Friday at the facilities, before being given the weekend off to visit family and train and play with their parent clubs. These players are also required to attend the Collège Catherine de Vivonne de Rambouillet and fulfil their academic obligations, before enrolling at the high school Lycée Louis Bascan de Rambouillet in pursuit of their Baccalauréat.

From Nicolas Anelka to Louis Saha, to Blaise Matuidi and Henry, we’ve seen quite a few Clairefontaine products who have gone on to play a leading role for the French senior team, but there have been quite a few other products who have achieved success for other national sides like Morocco’s Mehdi Benatia, the Ivory Coast’s Willy Boly, and Raphaël Guerreiro, who led Portugal to victory against France in the 2016 Euros Final. Another Clairefontaine graduate who’s enjoyed an impressive career is Quentin Westberg.

Born in the Parisian suburb of Suresnes to an American father and a French mother, Westberg developed at Clairefontaine between 1999 and 2002, where he was featured in Bruno Sevaistre’s  ‘À la Clairefontaine’ documentary series by Bruno Sevaistre which chronicled the lives of France’s top young footballers during their time at the academy. He would play for a plethora of French sides like Troyes, Evian, Auxerre, Tours and Luzenac before deciding to head across the Atlantic in 2019 and join Toronto FC, where he would go from backup goalkeeper to No.1 in goal. Although he represented the USA at the U17, U20 and U23 level, he never played in the USA until 2023, making the move to Atlanta United and playing six times in two years before deciding to hang up his boots in November 2024 and terminate his 18-year-long professional career.

“[Clairefontaine] was foundational for me,” stated Westberg in an exclusive Get French Football News interview. “It laid the foundation for who I became as an athlete, as a man, and also as a football player. It’s a cradle of football in France, if not the world, because all of the top clubs and federations would come and take inspiration from what was done in Clairefontaine. Clairefontaine used to be a three-year program, now it’s two years, but it was basically a program for the top players in the Paris area and surroundings.”

‘World football has benefited’ -Westberg on Clairefontaine

“Every year, it would produce anywhere from two to three to five to 10 players from each age group who actually turned out to be professionals at some point in their career, and some had a lasting effect on the game. It’s an academy that has put France on the map, delivering two generations of World Cup winners. The French national team has benefited from players who had gone through the Clairefontaine ranks, but world football has benefited as well. It’s fair to say that it’s a top academy,” he added.

In contrast to other academies across the world, which attempt to transmit a specific footballing formation and system, Clairefontaine instead focuses on instilling its students with various traits like improving their movement, linking up with teammates, and using their weak foot. Clairefontaine hasn’t just provided Parisian youngsters with a steady platform, with their education and training completely paid for by the FFF, enabling these players to focus on their studies and footballing growth whilst steering clear of distractions.

Between Real Madrid’s Mbappé, Sunderland’s Pierre Ekwah, Roma’s Manu Koné and Saint-Etienne’s Mathis Amougou, we’re seeing more and more Clairefontaine products break onto the scene and make a name for themselves at the top level of the game. As long as Clairefontaine continues to grind out top young prospects, expect the French national team to continue vying for the biggest trophies in world football.

GFFN | Zach Lowy