With the 2010 FIFA World Cup just a few weeks away, its time to breakdown the 32 teams that will be participating in The Great Tournament. Next up is the European nation of France.

Official Name: Fédération Française de Football


Nickname: Les Bleus

FIFA Confederation: UEFA (Europe)

FIFA Code: FRA

How They Qualified: Def. Ireland 2-1 agg. extra time in UEFA playoff.

World Cup Appearances (Including 2010): 13

Best WC Finish: Champions, France 1998

World Cup Record (MP: Wins - Draws - Losses): 51: 25W - 10D - 16L

Head Coach: Raymond Domenech

Most Capped Player (# of caps): Lilian Thuram (142)

All-Time Goal Scoring Leader (# of goals): Thierry Henry (51)

Brief Footballing History:
The French were perpetual underachievers until their 1998 World Cup title when Les Blues lifted the trophy on home soil. Great players like Just Fontaine, Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini, and Eric Cantona couldn't get France the World Cup trophy. It was the genius of Zinedine Zidane and his 2 goals in the '98 Final against Brazil that finally took France into the realm of champions.

France is one of 2 nations to have a World Cup trophy, Confederations Cup trophy, and Olympic Gold Medal, the other is Argentina. 1998-2003 was the Golden Age of French football, having captured a World Cup, a European Championship, and 2 Confederations Cups. In the last 15 years, only Brazil has more major international tournament hardware than the French.

Player To Watch:
France is rich with talent and there are a number of well known players to keep an eye on but Yoann Gourcuff is the present and future of the French attack.


Purepeople.com

The 23-year old playmaker played a massive part in Bordeaux breaking Lyon's 7-year hold on the Ligue 1 championship. The former AC Milan prospect has found a home with Bordeaux and has flourished in the system of his club coach, Laurent Blanc. Gourcuff has the talent to be the next in the line of great French midfield maestros.

Outlook:
France's controversial qualification for this World Cup has cast a lot of doubt about the quality of this team and more so the abilities of coach Raymond Domenech. How Domenech has managed to stay in his post is one of modern football's great mysteries.

There will be no Zidane in this tournament so Domenech will have to institute a total team effort for the French to duplicate their run to the final in 2006. France has the most talented team in the group but talent alone does not win matches.

Final 23-Man WC Roster:
Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux)

Defenders: William Gallas (Arsenal/ENG), Eric Abidal (Barcelona/ESP), Bakary Sagna (Arsenal/ENG), Patrice Evra (Manchester United/ENG), Gael Clichy (Arsenal/ENG), Marc Planus (Bordeaux), Anthony Reveillere (Lyon), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla/ESP)

Midfielders: Abou Diaby (Arsenal/ENG), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Florent Malouda (Chelsea/ENG), Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon)

Strikers: Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea/ENG), Djibril Cisse (Panathinaikos/GRE), Andre-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse), Sidney Govou (Lyon), Thierry Henry (Barcelona/ESP), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich/GER), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille)

WC Group Schedule:
June 11 vs. Uruguay
June 17 vs. México
June 22 vs. South Africa

That concludes the Group A Teams, next up are the teams in Group B