Raymond Kopa is a former French international football player who was very much prominent during the 1950s and the 1960s. He played as an attacking midfielder and a striker and is considered a footballing legend.
Raymond Kopa started his professional club football career at Angers SCO in 1948 and signed for Stade Reims in 1951. In 1956 he was signed by Spanish and European giants Real Madrid and went onto to Spanish league twice and the European Cup thrice. He became the first French footballer to win the elite trophy when Real defeated Fiorentina in the final in 1957.
Kopa returned to Stade Reims in 1959 and played for them until 1967, scoring 36 goals in 244 league matches. Raymond Kopa featured for the French national team between 1952 and 1962 and scored 18 goals in 45 international matches for his nation. He featured at the 1958 World Cup and was voted as the Best Player of the Tournament in the competition and retroactively as the Best Young Player of the Tournament for the 1954 World Cup finals.
Raymond Kopa won the Ballon d’or by France Football magazine in 1958 and was named by Pele in March 2004 as one of the 125 greatest living footballers.
