The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Mali

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This page contains a list of the greatest Malian Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 22 of which were born in Mali. This makes Mali the birth place of the 76th most number of Soccer Players behind Jamaica, and Albania.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Malian Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Malian Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Malian Soccer Players.

Photo of Salif Keïta

1. Salif Keïta (1946 - 2023)

With an HPI of 56.61, Salif Keïta is the most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages on wikipedia.

Salif Keïta Traoré (6 December 1946 – 2 September 2023), known as Keita, was a Malian footballer who played as a striker. He was also the first person to receive the African Footballer of the Year award in 1970. He was nicknamed the 'Black Panther'. Which inspired the club

Photo of Seydou Keita

2. Seydou Keita (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 51.20, Seydou Keita is the 2nd most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 49 different languages.

Seydou Keïta (French pronunciation: [sɛdu kɛjta]; anglicised to Keita; born 16 January 1980) is a Malian former professional footballer. A versatile midfielder, he operated as both a central or defensive midfielder. Keita most notably played for Lens (five seasons) and Barcelona (four), winning 14 titles with the latter club after signing in 2008. He started his youth career in Mali and his professional career with Marseille. His career would take him to clubs in France, Spain, China, Italy and Qatar. Keita represented Mali since the age of 18, appearing in seven Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and winning 102 caps. In addition to his Malian nationality, he also has French nationality.

Photo of Mahamadou Diarra

3. Mahamadou Diarra (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 46.55, Mahamadou Diarra is the 3rd most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 37 different languages.

Mahamadou Diarra (born 18 May 1981) is a Malian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He served as captain for the Mali national team.

Photo of Hamari Traoré

4. Hamari Traoré (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 41.60, Hamari Traoré is the 4th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Hamari Traoré (born 27 January 1992) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for La Liga club Real Sociedad, and captains the Mali national team.

Photo of Cheick Diabaté

5. Cheick Diabaté (b. 1988)

With an HPI of 37.43, Cheick Diabaté is the 5th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Cheick Tidiane Diabaté (born 25 April 1988) is a Malian professional footballer. From 2005 to 2016, he played for the Mali national team internationally.

Photo of Amadou Haidara

6. Amadou Haidara (b. 1998)

With an HPI of 35.52, Amadou Haidara is the 6th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Amadou Haidara (born 31 January 1998) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Bundesliga club RB Leipzig and the Mali national team.

Photo of Adama Coulibaly

7. Adama Coulibaly (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 34.85, Adama Coulibaly is the 7th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Adama Coulibaly (born 10 September 1980) is a Malian former professional footballer who played as a defender.

Photo of Kalifa Coulibaly

8. Kalifa Coulibaly (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 34.05, Kalifa Coulibaly is the 8th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Kalifa Coulibaly (born 21 August 1991) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a forward for French Championnat National club Caen and the Mali national team.

Photo of Modibo Maïga

9. Modibo Maïga (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 34.01, Modibo Maïga is the 9th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Modibo Maïga (born 3 September 1987) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a striker. A full international for Mali since 2007, he was part of their squads at the four Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, helping them to third place in the 2012 and 2013 editions.

Photo of Almamy Touré

10. Almamy Touré (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 33.87, Almamy Touré is the 10th most famous Malian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Almamy Touré (born 28 April 1996) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for 1. FC Kaiserslautern and the Mali national team.

People

Pantheon has 29 people classified as Malian soccer players born between 1946 and 2002. Of these 29, 28 (96.55%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Malian soccer players include Seydou Keita, Mahamadou Diarra, and Hamari Traoré. The most famous deceased Malian soccer players include Salif Keïta. As of April 2024, 7 new Malian soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Kalifa Coulibaly, Adama Traoré, and Nene Dorgeles.

Living Malian Soccer Players

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Deceased Malian Soccer Players

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Newly Added Malian Soccer Players (2024)

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