SBOTop
Buaksib
Home\Other Stories\Ligue 1 all-time topscorers

Ligue 1 all-time topscorers

Ligue 1 all-time topscorers

Ligue 1 all-time topscorers: France is known for producing some of the best talent in football. Who then go on to become few of the world’s best players. Few of the best goalscorers in football today were developed in the French leagues. This list includes the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmanne Dembele, Christopher Nkunku, Kingsley Coman, Sébastien Haller, Karim Benzema, Riyad Mahrez and Sadio Mané.

That being said, very few top players stay in Ligue 1 for an extended period to make a mark in the division. Today we will take a closer look at those legends of the French top flight who have managed to find the back of the net the most times. The below given list includes the top 90 scorers in Ligue 1 history.

Ligue 1 all time topscorers

Rank Player Goals Appearances Ratio First Last Club(s)
1 Delio Onnis 299 449 0.67 1971 1986 Reims (39 goals in 65 matches), Monaco (157 goals in 200 matches), Tours (64 goals in 110 matches), Toulon (39 goals in 74 matches)
2 Bernard Lacombe 255 497 0.51 1969 1987 Lyon (123 goals in 222 matches), Saint-Étienne (14 goals in 32 matches), Bordeaux (118 goals in 243 matches)
3 Hervé Revelli 216 389 0.56 1965 1978 Saint-Étienne (175 goals in 318 matches), Nice (41 goals in 71 matches)
4 Roger Courtois 210 288 0.73 1933 1956 Sochaux (209 goals in 285 matches), Troyes (1 goals in 3 matches)
5 Thadée Cisowski 206 286 0.72 1947 1961 Metz (45 goals in 86 matches), Racing (152 goals in 172 matches), Valenciennes (9 goals in 28 matches)
6 Roger Piantoni 203 394 0.52 1950 1966 Nancy (91 goals in 217 matches), Reims (106 goals in 161 matches), Nice (6 goals in 16 matches)
7 Joseph Ujlaki 190 438 0.43 1947 1964 Stade Français (3 goals in 7 matches), Sète (15 goals in 44 matches), Nîmes (38 goals in 92 matches), Nice (59 goals in 133 matches), Racing (75 goals in 162 matches)
8 Fleury Di Nallo 187 425 0.44 1960 1975 Lyon (182 goals in 413 matches), Red Star (5 goals in 12 matches)
9 Carlos Bianchi 179 220 0.81 1973 1980 Reims (107 goals in 124 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (64 goals in 74 matches), Strasbourg (8 goals in 22 matches)
Gunnar Andersson 179 234

0.76

 1950 1960 Marseille (169 goals in 220 matches), Bordeaux (10 goals in 14 matches)
11 Hassan Akesbi 173 293 0.59 1955 1964 Nîmes (119 goals in 204 matches), Reims (48 goals in 78 matches), Monaco (6 goals in 11 matches)
12 Jean Baratte 169 284 0.6 1945 1955 Lille (167 goals in 268 matches), Roubaix (2 goals in 16 matches)
13 Just Fontaine 164 200 0.82 1953 1962 Nice (42 goals in 69 matches), Reims (122 goals in 131 matches)
Kylian Mbappé 164 217 0.76 2015 2023 Monaco (16 goals in 41 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (148 goals in 176 matches)
15 Alain Giresse 163 587 0.28 1970 1988 Bordeaux (158 goals in 520 matches), Marseille (5 goals in 67 matches)
16 André Guy 159 271 0.59 1959 1971 Sochaux (3 goals in 6 matches), Saint-Étienne (45 goals in 65 matches), Lille (42 goals in 76 matches), Lyon (64 goals in 110 matches), Rennes (5 goals in 14 matches)
17 Désiré Koranyi 157 252

0.62

 1935 1950 Sète
18 Jean-Pierre Papin 156 270 0.58 1986 1998 Marseille (134 goals in 215 matches), Bordeaux (20 goals in 55 matches)
19 Jacky Vergnes 153 327 0.47 1968 1982 Red Star (11 goals in 41 matches), Nîmes (72 goals in 117 matches), Bastia (20 goals in 46 matches), Reims (11 goals in 26 matches), Laval (19 goals in 36 matches), Strasbourg (12 goals in 37 matches), Bordeaux (8 goals in 20 matches), Montpellier (0 goals in 4 matches)
20 Josip Skoblar 151 174 0.87 1966 1974 Marseille
21 Lucien Cossou 149 285 0.52 1956 1968 Lyon (35 goals in 91 matches), Monaco (97 goals in 161 matches), Aix (17 goals in 33 matches)
22 Wissam Ben Yedder 145 288 0.5 2010 2023 Toulouse (63 goals in 156 matches), Monaco (82 goals in 132 matches)
Dominique Rocheteau 145 417

0.35

 1972 1989 Saint-Étienne (51 goals in 153 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (83 goals in 204 matches), Toulouse (11 goals in 60 matches)
24 Rachid Mekhloufi 143 325 0.44 1954 1970 Saint-Étienne (123 goals in 274 matches), Bastia (20 goals in 67 matches)
25 Pauleta 141 266 0.53 2000 2008 Bordeaux (65 goals in 98 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (76 goals in 168 matches)
26 Yvon Douis 140 354 0.4 1953 1967 Lille (50 goals in 141 matches), Le Havre (28 goals in 71 matches), Monaco (62 goals in 167 matches)
27 Michel Platini 139 254 0.55 1973 1982 Nancy (81 goals in 150 matches), Saint-Étienne (58 goals in 104 matches)
Stéphane Bruey 139 423 0.33 1950 1966 Racing (11 goals in 44 matches), Monaco (25 goals in 81 matches), Angers (93 goals in 254 matches), Lyon (10 goals in 44 matches)
29 Edinson Cavani 138 200 0.69 2013 2020 Paris Saint-Germain
Sonny Anderson 138 221 0.62 1993 2003 Marseille (16 goals in 20 matches), Monaco (51 goals in 91 matches), Lyon (71 goals in 110 matches)
31 Salif Keïta 135 168

0.8

 1967 1973 Saint-Étienne (125 goals in 150 matches), Marseille (10 goals in 18 matches)
32 Hector De Bourgoing 133 258 0.52 1959 1969 Nice (65 goals in 114 matches), Bordeaux (68 goals in 137 matches)
33 Jacques Foix 132 361 0.37 1951 1964 Racing (24 goals in 52 matches), Saint-Étienne (54 goals in 129 matches), Nice (50 goals in 162 matches), Toulouse (4 goals in 18 matches)
Yannick Stopyra 132 448 0.29 1977 1992 Sochaux (57 goals in 176 matches), Rennes (10 goals in 37 matches), Toulouse (46 goals in 148 matches), Bordeaux (8 goals in 34 matches), Cannes (9 goals in 37 matches), Metz (2 goals in 24 matches)
35 Henri Hiltl 131 252 0.52 1934 1948 Excelsior (82 goals in 154 matches), Roubaix (49 goals in 98 matches)
36 Bernard Zénier 130 466 0.28 1974 1991 Metz (55 goals in 232 matches), Nancy (53 goals in 144 matches), Bordeaux (4 goals in 25 matches), Marseille (18 goals in 65 matches)
37 François M’Pelé 129 350 0.37 1969 1981 Ajaccio (57 goals in 121 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (60 goals in 167 matches), Lens (12 goals in 62 matches)
Gérard Soler 129 428 0.3 1972 1987 Sochaux (67 goals in 162 matches), Monaco (9 goals in 28 matches), Bordeaux (16 goals in 91 matches), Toulouse (19 goals in 58 matches), Strasbourg (6 goals in 32 matches), Bastia (6 goals in 23 matches), Lille (5 goals in 13 matches), Rennes (1 goals in 21 matches)
39 Alberto Muro 128 269 0.48 1951 1962 Sochaux (57 goals in 123 matches), Nice (43 goals in 85 matches), Nancy (28 goals in 61 matches)
40 Alexandre Lacazette 127 238

0.53

 2010 2023 Lyon
41 Jean Grumellon 126 203 0.62 1947 1954 Rennes (107 goals in 157 matches), Nice (5 goals in 14 matches), Le Havre (14 goals in 33 matches)
Lilian Laslandes 126 407 0.31 1992 2008 Auxerre (47 goals in 125 matches), Bordeaux (56 goals in 179 matches), Bastia (8 goals in 30 matches), Nice (15 goals in 73 matches)
43 Joseph Yegba Maya 124 238

0.52

 1962 1975 Marseille (79 goals in 133 matches), Valenciennes (33 goals in 74 matches), Strasbourg (12 goals in 31 matches)
44 Bafétimbi Gomis 122 340 0.36 2004 2017 Saint-Étienne (38 goals in 131 matches), Lyon (64 goals in 178 matches), Marseille (20 goals in 32 matches)
45 Henri Baillot 121 241

0.5

 1945 1954 Metz (80 goals in 158 matches), Bordeaux (35 goals in 67 matches), Strasbourg (6 goals in 16 matches)
Ernest Schultz 121 275 0.44 1954 1963 Lyon (35 goals in 88 matches), Toulouse (86 goals in 187 matches)
René Gardien 121 340 0.36 1947 1959 Sochaux
48 André Simonyi 120 186 0.65 1933 1953 Olympique Lillois (37 goals in 51 matches), Sochaux (8 goals in 15 matches), Red Star (47 goals in 72 matches), Rennes (13 goals in 21 matches), Stade Français (10 goals in 16 matches), Roubaix (5 goals in 11 matches)
François Félix 120 341 0.35 1968 1981 Lyon (5 goals in 31 matches), Bastia (63 goals in 160 matches), Paris (19 goals in 36 matches), Nîmes (10 goals in 44 matches), Angers (22 goals in 65 matches), Auxerre (1 goals in 5 matches)
Serge Chiesa 120 475 0.25 1969 1983 Lyon
51 Jean Vincent 119 421 0.28 1950 1964 Lille (51 goals in 154 matches), Reims (68 goals in 267 matches)
52 Oskar Rohr 118 136 0.87 1934 1939 Strasbourg
53 Nestor Combin 117 221 0.53 1959 1975 Lyon (68 goals in 131 matches), Metz (34 goals in 59 matches), Red Star (15 goals in 31 matches)
Didier Couécou 117 308 0.38 1963 1976 Bordeaux (75 goals in 188 matches), Marseille (28 goals in 79 matches), Nantes (14 goals in 41 matches)
Bernard Genghini 117 360

0.33

 1976 1989 Sochaux (60 goals in 181 matches), Saint-Étienne (8 goals in 36 matches), Monaco (45 goals in 106 matches), Marseille (3 goals in 36 matches), Bordeaux (1 goals in 4 matches)
Georges Lech 117 379 0.31 1962 1976 Lens (71 goals in 187 matches), Sochaux (39 goals in 118 matches), Reims (7 goals in 74 matches)
Dominique Rustichelli 117 459 0.25 1952 1970 Marseille (33 goals in 138 matches), Sedan (12 goals in 50 matches), Strasbourg (3 goals in 17 matches), Reims (5 goals in 11 matches), Nice (28 goals in 114 matches), Stade Français (15 goals in 59 matches), Lille (0 goals in 7 matches), Rouen (21 goals in 63 matches)
58 Ginès Liron 116 239 0.49 1954 1965 Nîmes (21 goals in 37 matches), Sochaux (29 goals in 71 matches), Valenciennes (18 goals in 38 matches), Saint-Étienne (48 goals in 93 matches)
59 Pierre Sinibaldi 115 189 0.61 1945 1954 Reims (115 goals in 188 matches), Lyon (0 goals in 1 matches)
60 Zlatan Ibrahimović 113 122 0.93 2012 2016 Paris Saint-Germain
Charly Loubet 113 360

0.31

 1962 1975 Stade Français (5 goals in 22 matches), Nice (77 goals in 272 matches), Marseille (31 goals in 66 matches)
Maryan Wisniewski 113 415 0.27 1953 1969 Lens (93 goals in 277 matches), Saint-Étienne (12 goals in 48 matches), Sochaux (8 goals in 90 matches)
63 Éric Pécout 112 277

0.4

 1974 1986 Nantes (73 goals in 156 matches), Monaco (17 goals in 38 matches), Metz (8 goals in 29 matches), Strasbourg (14 goals in 54 matches)
André Strappe 112 341 0.33 1948 1961 Lille (99 goals in 275 matches), Le Havre (13 goals in 66 matches)
65 Bernard Blanchet 111 357 0.31 1963 1974 Nantes
66 Claude Papi 110 392 0.28 1968 1982 Bastia
Albert Emon 110 410 0.27 1972 1988 Marseille (37 goals in 133 matches), Reims (4 goals in 6 matches), Monaco (26 goals in 78 matches), Lyon (17 goals in 60 matches), Toulon (21 goals in 103 matches), Cannes (5 goals in 30 matches)
68 Henri Skiba 109 294 0.37 1950 1963 Nancy (0 goals in 10 matches), Monaco (18 goals in 47 matches), Strasbourg (19 goals in 64 matches), Nîmes (47 goals in 104 matches), Sochaux (3 goals in 6 matches), Stade Français (22 goals in 63 matches)
69 Pierre Flamion 106 285 0.37 1945 1960 Reims (65 goals in 152 matches), Marseille (11 goals in 29 matches), Lyon (5 goals in 32 matches), Troyes (24 goals in 62 matches), Limoges (1 goals in 10 matches)
Albert Gemmrich 106 308

0.34

 1973 1986 Strasbourg (71 goals in 193 matches), Bordeaux (35 goals in 94 matches), Lille (0 goals in 17 matches), Nice (0 goals in 4 matches)
Léon Deladerrière 106 379 0.28 1947 1963 Nancy (96 goals in 321 matches), Toulouse (10 goals in 58 matches)
Michel Stievenard 106 405

0.26

 1954 1968 Lens (43 goals in 170 matches), Angers (63 goals in 235 matches)
73 Édouard Kargu 105 208 0.5 1949 1956 Bordeaux
Daniel Xuereb 105 442 0.24 1977 1993 Lyon (21 goals in 95 matches), Lens (39 goals in 164 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (29 goals in 80 matches), Montpellier (21 goals in 65 matches), Marseille (3 goals in 18 matches), Toulon (1 goals in 20 matches)
75 Bernard Rahis 104 241 0.43 1954 1963 Nîmes
Alain Caveglia 104 313 0.33 1990 2000 Sochaux (25 goals in 129 matches), Le Havre (31 goals in 72 matches), Lyon (47 goals in 102 matches), Nantes (1 goals in 10 matches)
77 Robert Pintenat 103 298 0.35 1969 1983 Rouen (2 goals in 12 matches), Red Star (17 goals in 64 matches), Nîmes (7 goals in 41 matches), Sochaux (62 goals in 129 matches), Nancy (7 goals in 28 matches), Toulouse (8 goals in 24 matches)
Abdelkrim Merry 103 337 0.31 1974 1989 Bastia (23 goals in 93 matches), Lille (12 goals in 35 matches), Metz (23 goals in 36 matches), Strasbourg (3 goals in 24 matches), Tours (6 goals in 25 matches), Le Havre (17 goals in 34 matches), Saint-Étienne (9 goals in 30 matches), Racing (10 goals in 50 matches)
Dimitri Payet 103 492

0.21

 2005 2023 Nantes (5 goals in 33 matches), Saint-Étienne (19 goals in 129 matches), Lille (18 goals in 71 matches), Marseille (61 goals in 259 matches)
François Brisson 103 505 0.2 1975 1993 Paris Saint-Germain (6 goals in 81 matches), Laval (22 goals in 96 matches), Lens (40 goals in 143 matches), Strasbourg (10 goals in 38 matches), Marseille (1 goals in 31 matches), Lyon (7 goals in 28 matches), Lille (17 goals in 88 matches)
81 Philippe Piat 102 240 0.43 1965 1972 Strasbourg (48 goals in 134 matches), Monaco (16 goals in 32 matches), Sochaux (38 goals in 74 matches)
Marc Berdoll 102 251 0.41 1970 1981 Angers (62 goals in 159 matches), Marseille (40 goals in 92 matches)
André-Pierre Gignac 102 290 0.35 2006 2015 Lorient (11 goals in 50 matches), Toulouse (35 goals in 100 matches), Marseille (59 goals in 155 matches)
Mustapha Dahleb 102 297

0.34

 1969 1984 Sedan (17 goals in 29 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (85 goals in 268 matches)
Philippe Vercruysse 102 458 0.22 1980 1997 Lens (46 goals in 210 matches), Bordeaux (17 goals in 64 matches), Marseille (21 goals in 99 matches), Nîmes (14 goals in 59 matches), Metz (4 goals in 26 matches)
Jimmy Briand 102 483 0.21 2003 2022 Rennes (33 goals in 169 matches), Lyon (22 goals in 110 matches), Guingamp (30 goals in 106 matches), Bordeaux (17 goals in 98 matches)
87 Vahid Halilhodžić 101 181 0.56 1981 1987 Nantes (93 goals in 163 matches), Paris Saint-Germain (8 goals in 18 matches)
Victor Nurenberg 101 307 0.33 1952 1963 Nice (89 goals in 252 matches), Sochaux (7 goals in 35 matches), Lyon (5 goals in 20 matches)
Patrick Revelli 101 362 0.28 1969 1982 Saint-Étienne (74 goals in 226 matches), Sochaux (27 goals in 136 matches)
90 Philippe Gondet 100 212 0.47 1963 1972 Nantes (98 goals in 194 matches), Red Star (2 goals in 18 matches)
Mamadou Niang 100 258 0.39 2000 2010 Troyes (8 goals in 47 matches), Strasbourg (21 goals in 56 matches), Marseille (71 goals in 155 matches)

1. Delio Onnis 299 goals

Unlike most leagues around the world, particularly in Europe, the topscorer in Ligue 1 is not a Frenchman. That honour goes to the Argentine, Onnis. The Italian born striker spent his entire career outside Argentina in France. He has donned the colours of four clubs in Reims, Monaco, Tours and Toulon.

El Tano’s goal tally falls just one shy of the impressive 300 mark. He did so in 449 matches across fifteen seasons. This puts his goal to match ratio at 0.67. Which spoiler alert is the highest by anyone in the top three. This means that he has scored the most goals despite playing fewer games than the other two men in the top three.

2. Bernard Lacombe 255 goals

Next up on the list is Bernard Lacombe, who played in a similar time to El Tano. These two strikers were constantly fighting for the top goal scorer recognition year after year. Lyon, Bordeaux and Saint-Étienne were the clubs the striker represented. He is considered a legend in the first two clubs as he gained over 200 caps for both teams. His time at Saint-Étienne was limited to just a season.

The 255 goals he scored in 497 games puts him 2nd in the all time top scorers list. His 0.51 goal ratio is the lowest among the top 6 men in this list.

3. Hervé Revelli 216 goals

Next up is another French striker who held the top scorer record for a while. Hervé Revelli played much of his football for Saint-Étienne. His two spells at the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes were separated by a two season stint at Nice. He later headed to Switzerland to continue his career. Before returning to France towards the end of his career.

That being said, all of his goals in the French top tier came for Saint-Étienne and Nice. From 389 French top division appearances he managed to trouble the keeper 216 times. This comes at a scoring ratio at 0.56.

4. Roger Courtois 210 goals

Another Frenchman in the list, Courtois has represented four clubs in his career. However, it is his time at Sochaux that puts him on the list. His only goal in the French top flight not for Sochaux came in his 3 appearances in the league for Troyes.

His scoring ratio of 0.73 is the highest in the top eight list. This comes through 210 goals from 288 appearances.

5. Thadée Cisowski 206 goals

Yet another Frenchman makes this list. Thadée Cisowski had a career filled with injuries ans=d would have been much higher in the list, if not for those matches missed. In 286 games in the 1st division of France, he scored 206 goals. This puts his ratio of goals per game at 0.72. His goal came for the likes of Metz, Racing and Valenciennes.

In terms of current players, none are close to disturbing the top five rank holders. However, it is likely Mbappe would enter the top 10 if PSG hold on to Mbappe for another season. In the unlikely event of Mbappe continuing his career in France, there is a good chance Delio Onnis’ record can be overthrown.

Rohan Premkumar
Rohan Premkumar
A lifelong football fan, brought into this industry by the love of football and the passion for analytics. I strive to provide my readers with insightful and engaging coverage of the beautiful game.