Franck Ribéry is a French international footballer who plays for German club Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga and for the France national team. Known for his energy, pace and precision passing, he plays as a winger on the left side. He is also an excellent dribbler who \"has great control with the ball at his feet\". Ribéry began his football career at age six playing in the youth section of amateur club FC Conti de Boulogne-Sur-Mer. In 1996, after seven whole years, he joined professional outfit Lille, who were playing in the second division. In the Turkish Cup, Ribéry was instrumental in the club\'s 5–1 thrashing of rivals Fenerbahçe in the competition\'s ultimate match. He scored the opening goal in the 16th minute and also assisted on another goal. On 15 June 2005, Ribéry made a decision to join Marseille on a five-year contract. Ribéry made his debut on 30 July 2005 in a 2–0 defeat to Bordeaux. On 17 September, he scored his first goal for the club in their 2–1 victory over Troyes. In the Coupe de France, Ribéry performed well scoring a double against Le Havre and scoring the opening goal in Marseille\'s 3–1 semi-final victory over Rennes. In the UEFA Cup, he scored one goal in the second leg of Marseille\'s tie with Bolton Wanderers leading to him being named the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Young Player of the Year. Ribéry was awarded the French Player of the Year by French sports publication France Football during the 2006-2007 season. On 7 June 2007, German club Bayern Munich bought Ribéry on a four-year deal for €25 million. With Bayern, he has won the double on two occasions; in the 2007–08 and 2009–10 seasons. Ribéry is a French international who has represented his nation at two FIFA World Cups and two UEFA European Football Championships. Individually, Ribéry is a two-time winner of the French Player of the Year award and has also won the German Footballer of the Year becoming the first player to hold both honours.
