WFranz Anton Beckenbauer is a German former professional footballer and manager. In his playing career he was nicknamed Der Kaiser because of his elegant style, dominance and leadership on the field, and also as his first name "Franz" is reminiscent of the Austrian emperors. He is widely regarded to be one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. A versatile player who started out as a midfielder, Beckenbauer made his name as a central defender. He is often credited as having invented the role of the modern sweeper (libero).
WIker Casillas Fernández is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Popularly dubbed "San Iker" for his ability to produce spectacular saves, Casillas is widely considered to be one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. He is known for his athleticism, quick reactions and outstanding shot-stopping ability. Having spent the majority of his career at Real Madrid, Casillas is one of the few players to achieve over 1000 professional career matches, and holds the record for the most clean sheets in the UEFA Champions League, as well as for the Spain national team.
WGiorgio Chiellini is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a defender and captains both Serie A club Juventus and the Italy national team. Chiellini is a physically strong and aggressive defender, and is considered one of the world's best centre-backs; he is also capable of playing as a left-back, both in a three or four-man defence.
WDidier Claude Deschamps is a French professional football manager and former player who has been manager of the France national team since 2012. He played as a defensive midfielder for several clubs, in France, Italy, England and Spain, namely Marseille, Juventus, Chelsea and Valencia, as well as Nantes and Bordeaux. Nicknamed "the water-carrier" by former France teammate Eric Cantona, Deschamps was an intelligent and hard-working defensive midfielder who excelled at winning back possession and subsequently starting attacking plays, and also stood out for his leadership throughout his career. As a French international, he was capped on 103 occasions and took part at three UEFA European Football Championships and one FIFA World Cup, captaining his nation to victories in the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.
WBernard Dietz is a former German football player and manager. He captained the West Germany national team to victory in the UEFA Euro 1980.
WGiacinto Facchetti was an Italian footballer who played as a defender at left-back position for Inter Milan from 1960 to 1978. He later served as Inter chairman from January 2004 until his death in 2006. He played 634 official games for the club, scoring 75 goals, and was a member of "Grande Inter" team under manager Helenio Herrera which won four Serie A titles, a Coppa Italia, two European Cups, and two Intercontinental Cups. He placed second for the Ballon d'Or in 1965.
WRuud Gullit is a Dutch footballer and subsequent manager who played professionally in the 1980s and 1990s as a defender, attacking midfielder, midfielder or forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he captained the Netherlands national team that was victorious at UEFA Euro 1988 and was also a member of the squad for the 1990 FIFA World Cup and Euro 1992.
WJürgen Klinsmann is a German professional football manager and former player. Klinsmann played for several prominent clubs in Europe including VfB Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur, and Bayern Munich. He was part of the West German team that won the 1990 FIFA World Cup and the unified German team that won the 1996 UEFA European Championship. As a manager, he managed the German national team to a third-place finish in the 2006 World Cup and was subsequently coach of a number of other teams including, notably, Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the United States national team.
WIgor Aleksandrovich Netto was a Soviet footballer, considered one of the greatest Soviet players ever. He started out playing on the left of defense but, due to his offensive mentality, dribbling and technical abilities turned into a dynamic central midfielder. His versatility and footballing intelligence allowed him to play a number of positions across defense and midfield.
WLars Christian Olsen a Danish former footballer and current manager, who was most recently the manager of and Esbjerg fB in the Danish Superliga. He started his coaching career with Randers in 2003, guiding them to promotion for the Danish Superliga. He led the team to the 2006 Danish Cup trophy, and Olsen was named 2006 Danish Manager of the Year. He then coached Odense BK from 2007 to 2010.
WMichel François Platini is a French football administrator and former player and manager. As the president of UEFA in 2015 he was banned from involvement in football under FIFA's organisation, over ethics violations. The ban will last until 2023. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, and came seventh in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. In recognition of his achievements, he was named a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur in 1985 and became an Officier in 1998.
WCristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Manchester United and captains the Portugal national team. Often considered the best player in the world and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Ronaldo has won five Ballon d'Or awards and four European Golden Shoes, the most by a European player. He has won 32 trophies in his career, including seven league titles, five UEFA Champions Leagues, one UEFA European Championship and one UEFA Nations League. Ronaldo holds the records for most goals (134) and assists (42) in the Champions League, most goals in the European Championship (14), and most international goals by a male player (111). He is one of the few recorded players to have made over 1,100 professional career appearances, and has scored over 780 official senior career goals for club and country.
WTheodoros Zagorakis is a Greek politician and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was the captain of the Greece national team that won UEFA Euro 2004, and was also president of PAOK FC. He was named the Greek Male Athlete of the Year in 2004. He was elected as a Greek MEP at the May 2014 European Parliament election. He was also the president of the Hellenic Football Federation from March to September 2021.