Marc-Vivien Foé

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Marc-Vivien Foé

| image = Marc-Vivien Foé, 2003.jpg

| image_size = 200

| caption = Foé playing for Cameroon in 2003

| full_name = Marc-Vivien Foé

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1975|5|1}}

| birth_place = Yaoundé, Cameroon

| death_date ={{death date and age|2003|6|26|1975|5|1|df=yes}}

| death_place = Lyon, France

| height = 1.88 m

| position = Midfielder

| youthyears1 = 1991–1992

| youthclubs1 = Union de Garoua

| youthyears2 = 1992–1994

| youthclubs2 = Fogape Yaoundé

| years1 = 1994

| clubs1 = Canon Yaoundé

| caps1 =

| goals1 =

| years2 = 1994–1999

| clubs2 = Lens

| caps2 = 85

| goals2 = 11

| years3 = 1999–2000

| clubs3 = West Ham United

| caps3 = 38

| goals3 = 1

| years4 = 2000–2003

| clubs4 = Lyon

| caps4 = 43

| goals4 = 3

| years5 = 2002–2003

| clubs5 = → Manchester City (loan)

| caps5 = 35

| goals5 = 9

| totalcaps = 201

| totalgoals = 24

| nationalyears1 = 1993

| nationalteam1 = Cameroon U20

| nationalcaps1 = 3

| nationalgoals1 = 1

| nationalyears2 = 1993–2003

| nationalteam2 = Cameroon

| nationalcaps2 = 62

| nationalgoals2 = 8

}}

Marc-Vivien Foé (1 May 1975 – 26 June 2003) was a Cameroonian professional footballer, who played as a defensive midfielder.

Having initially played for Canon Yaoundé, Foé went on to play professionally in Ligue 1 and the Premier League with Lens, West Ham United, Lyon and Manchester City. On 26 June 2003, Foé died suddenly during an international match for Cameroon, an event which shocked the football community worldwide.{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3050794.stm | title = State funeral for Foe | publisher = BBC Sport| date=7 July 2003| access-date = 16 December 2007|author=Martin Etonge}} The death was later ruled to be due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He was capped 62 times by his nation and had scored 8 goals.

He was posthumously decorated with the Commander of the National Order of Valour and had his shirt numbers 23 and 17 retired by Manchester City and Lens, respectively.

Club career

Foé was born on 1 May 1975 in Yaoundé. He started as a junior with Elite Two side Union de Garoua.{{cite web | url = http://www.rediff.com/sports/2003/jul/08foe.htm | title = Thousands follow Foe to burial | publisher = Rediff| date=8 July 2003| access-date = 16 December 2007}} Moving to Canon Yaoundé, one of the biggest clubs in Cameroon, he won the Cameroonian Cup in 1993.{{cite web | url = https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/FootballFicheJoueur2682.html | title = La fiche de Marc-Vivien Foé | work = L'Équipe| access-date = 16 December 2007|language=fr}}

After turning down Auxerre for a trainee position, he signed for another French club, RC Lens of Ligue 1.{{cite web | url = http://www.bonaberi.com/article.php?aid=2263 | title = La vie de Marc Vivien Foé | publisher = Bonaberi| access-date = 16 December 2007}} His debut on 13 August 1994 was a 2–1 win against Montpellier. In five seasons at Lens, he won the 1998 French league title.

In 1998, he was targeted by Manchester United, but Lens turned down a £3 million offer for him.{{cite news | url = https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-lens-want-united-to-dig-deep-for-foe-1158509.html | title = Football: Lens want United to dig deep for Foe | first1 = Rupert | last1 = Metcalf | first2 = Alan | last2 = Nixon | newspaper = The Independent | date = 19 May 1998 | access-date = 4 January 2011 | location=London}} Further negotiations between the clubs were curtailed abruptly after he broke a leg at Cameroon's pre-World Cup training camp,{{cite news |first=Rupert |last=Metcalf |title=Foe's World Cup dream ends with broken leg |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-foes-world-cup-dream-ends-with-broken-leg-1157199.html |website=The Independent |date=25 May 1998 |access-date=29 June 2016}} and subsequently missed the whole of the 1998 World Cup.

Shortly after his recovery, he moved to English Premier League club West Ham United, for a club record fee of £4.2 million in January 1999.{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3026400.stm | title = Fans unite in Foe grief | publisher = BBC Sport| access-date = 16 December 2007 | date=27 June 2003 | first=Frank | last=Keogh}} He played 38 league matches for West Ham, scoring one goal against Sheffield Wednesday.{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/jun/28/guardianobituaries.brianglanville | title = Marc-Vivien Foé | newspaper = The Guardian | date = 28 June 2003 | access-date = 4 January 2011 | location=London | first=Brian | last=Glanville}}{{cite news

|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-wednesday-undone-by-di-canio-1127841.html

|title=Wednesday undone by Di Canio

|work=The Independent

|date=21 November 1999 |access-date=29 December 2009

| location=London

| first=Mike

| last=Rowbottom}} He also scored a goal in West Ham's 3–1 win against NK Osijek in the UEFA Cup.{{cite news

|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/1999/oct/01/newsstory.sport6

|title=Hammers ease ahead on cruise control

|work=The Guardian

|date=30 September 1999 |access-date=29 December 2009

| location=London

| first=Mark

| last=Isaacs}}

In May 2000, he moved back to France, joining Lyon on a £6 million transfer.{{cite news |title=Summer signings |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/876185.stm |publisher=BBC Sport |date=12 August 2000 |access-date=17 March 2012}} He missed much of the season after he developed symptoms of malaria.{{cite web | url = http://soccernet.espn.go.com/archive/england/players/foemarc-vivien.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070718025457/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/archive/england/players/foemarc-vivien.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 18 July 2007 | title = Marc-Vivien Foe | publisher = ESPN| access-date = 3 October 2008}} After recovery, he won the Coupe de la Ligue in 2001, and the Division 1 league title a year later.{{cite news |title=Former clubs to honor fallen player |url=http://www.espnfc.com/story/270672/former-clubs-to-honor-fallen-player |publisher=ESPN FC |date=27 June 2003 |access-date=29 June 2016}}

Foé then returned to the English Premier League, loaned to Manchester City in the 2002–03 season for £550,000.{{cite web | url = http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/s/15/15328_foe_signs_for_city.html | title = Foe signs for City | date = 17 February 2007 | publisher = Manchester Evening News| access-date = 16 December 2007}} His debut on the opening day of the season was a 3–0 loss to Leeds United. Foé was a first team regular for Kevin Keegan's team, starting 38 of 41 matches. His first goal for the club came against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on 9 December 2002,{{cite web | url = http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/manchester_city/s/26/26287_sunderland_0_manchester_city_3.html | title = Sunderland 0 Manchester City 3 | publisher = Manchester Evening News| access-date = 16 December 2007}} and he scored five more goals in the next month. His second goal in a 3–0 victory against Sunderland on 21 April 2003 was the club's final goal at their old Maine Road stadium.{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/3024476.stm | title = Foe: Career on two continents | publisher = BBC Sport| access-date = 16 December 2007 | date=26 June 2003}}

International career

Foé began representing Cameroon at under-20s when he was called up to the squad of 18 players for the 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship in Australia, under the management of Jean Manga-Onguéné.{{cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/mm/document/afdeveloping/technicaldevp/50/05/87/wyc_93_tr_part4_187.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100215184357/http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/afdeveloping/technicaldevp/50/05/87/wyc_93_tr_part4_187.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 February 2010 |title=Facts and figures |publisher=FIFA |pages=122, 138, 142 |access-date=29 June 2016}} He played in all of their three group stage matches, scoring one goal in a 3–2 defeat to Colombia in their second match on 8 March 1993, as Cameroon were eventually eliminated from the competition after finishing third. Foé later made his senior debut against Mexico on 22 September 1993 at the Memorial Coliseum, a match which Cameroon lost 1–0.{{cite news | url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/06/26/foe_facts/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20030920155929/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/06/26/foe_facts/ | url-status = dead | archive-date = 20 September 2003 | title = Marc-Vivien Foe Factbox | publisher = CNN| access-date = 16 December 2007}}{{cite news |first=Julie |last=Cart |title=Mexico's reserve team easily beats Cameroon |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-09-23-sp-38071-story.html |website=Los Angeles Times |date=23 September 1993 |access-date=29 June 2016}}

The following year, he was included in the Cameroon squad for the 1994 World Cup, starting all three of their matches.{{cite web | url = https://www.rsssf.org/tables/94full.html | title = World Cup 1994 | publisher = Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation| access-date = 16 December 2007}} Team members had been in various financial and disciplinary disputes with the Cameroon Football Association,{{cite book |last=Glanville |first=Brian |title=The Story of the World Cup |publisher=Faber and Faber |location=London |year=2005 |isbn=0-571-22944-1|pages=343}} and the squad was a shadow of the one which had famously reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 1990.{{cite news | author=Brian Glanville | url = https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/jun/28/guardianobituaries.brianglanville | title = Marc-Vivien Foé | work = The Guardian| date=28 June 2003| access-date = 3 October 2008 | location=London}} Cameroon mustered just one point from three matches, and finished with an embarrassing 6–1 defeat to Russia.Glanville, The Story of the World Cup, p 344. However, Foé's consistently strong performances as a defensive midfielder (including a goal assist){{cite web|url=http://www.planetworldcup.com/CUPS/1994/groupb_swe_v_cmr.html|publisher=Planet World Cup|title=Planet World Cup – 1994 – Group B – Sweden v Cameroon}} prompted interest from European clubs.

He was in the Cameroon squad in the 2002 World Cup. As in 1994, he played in all of Cameroon's matches. Though the team performed better than in 1994, they were again eliminated at the group stage, having beaten Saudi Arabia, drawn with Ireland and lost to Germany.

=Death=

File:FoeFlowers.jpg.]]

Foé was part of the Cameroon squad for the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. He played in wins against Brazil and Turkey and was rested for the match against the United States, with Cameroon having already qualified.

File:Allé Marc Vivien Foé (Lens).JPG and Bollaert stadium (Lens)]]

On 26 June 2003, Cameroon faced Colombia in the semi-final, held at the Stade de Gerland in Lyon, France. In the 72nd minute of the match Foé collapsed in the centre circle{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/3024360.stm | title = Cameroon star Foe dies | publisher= BBC Sport| access-date = 5 January 2008 | date=26 June 2003}} with no other players near him.{{cite news | url = http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,1563,985814,00.html | title = Footballer Foe dies during game | work= The Guardian| access-date = 5 January 2008 | location=London | date=26 June 2003}} After attempts to resuscitate him on the pitch, he was stretchered off the field, where he received mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and oxygen. Medics spent 45 minutes attempting to restart his heart and although he was still alive upon arrival at the stadium's medical centre, he died shortly afterwards. A first autopsy did not determine an exact cause of death, but a second autopsy concluded that Foé's death was heart-related as it discovered evidence of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,{{cite news | url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/07/07/foe_autopsy/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20030713132415/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/2003/07/07/foe_autopsy/ | url-status = dead | archive-date = 13 July 2003 | title = Autopsy reveals Foe died of heart problem | publisher= CNN| access-date = 5 January 2008}} a hereditary condition known to increase the risk of sudden death during physical exercise.

Foé's widow Marie-Louise stated that he had been ill with gastric problems and dysentery before his final match, but he was adamant to play in his adopted hometown of Lyon. Cameroon manager Winfried Schäfer wanted to substitute him minutes before his collapse, observing that the player seemed fatigued, but he signalled that he wanted to continue.{{cite news|title=Foe ill before match|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/3027850.stm|access-date=10 April 2016|publisher=BBC Sport|date=28 June 2003}}

Personal life

Foé was a practising Roman Catholic and donated money to charity regularly.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/africa/3026400.stm|title=Fans unite in Foe grief|date=27 June 2003|access-date=17 September 2017|publisher=BBC News}} He held Cameroonian and French nationalities.{{cite web | url=https://www.ligue1.fr/joueur?id=marc-vivien-foe | title=Joueur }}

=Tributes=

Foé's death caused a profound shock. Numerous tributes to his joyous personality and infectious humour were expressed in the media. France national team player Thierry Henry and other French players pointed to the sky in tribute to Foé after Henry had opened the scoring against Turkey in their Confederations Cup semi-final that evening.{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/3019126.stm | title = France 3–2 Turkey | publisher = BBC Sport| date= 26 June 2003|access-date = 26 September 2009}}

File:Foeplaque.JPG]]

It was suggested that the Confederations Cup and the Stade Gerland could have been renamed after him, and Manchester City manager Kevin Keegan announced that the club would no longer use the number 23 shirt Foé wore during his successful season there. At Manchester City's former ground, Maine Road, there is a small memorial to him in the stadium's memorial garden, and on the walls of the players' tunnel are plaques paid for by supporters, with their names, dubbed the Walk of Pride. The first plaque on the wall is for Marc and reads "Marc Vivien Foé – 1975–2003". His first club, Lens, gave his name to an avenue near the Stade Félix Bollaert. Foé was given a state funeral in Cameroon.

Similar to Manchester City, Lens decided to withdraw the number 17 shirt that Foé wore for five years.

Lyon also decided to withdraw the number 17 shirt that Foé also wore a year before during the time which he played at the Stade de Gerland with the Lyon team. People in Lyon were shocked as he had received a warm welcome on his return to the stadium. However, when fellow Cameroonian Jean II Makoun was transferred to Lyon, Makoun took up the number 17 shirt, explaining that he wore the number: "In memory of Marc, for me and for the whole Cameroon, this will be for something."

Prior to the kick-off of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup final between the United States and Brazil, his son, then fourteen years old, gave a brief speech in memory of his father.

Career statistics

=Club=

rowspan="2"\|Club !rowspan="2"\|Season !colspan="3"\|League !colspan="2"\|National Cup !colspan="2"\|League Cup !colspan="2"\|Continental !colspan="2"\|Total
class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" \|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionSingle source here, if player is inactive. If player has not retired, move source next to "Updated" template.
Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
rowspan="6"\|Lens \|1994–95 \|rowspan="5"\|Division 1 \|15	3							15	3
1995–96 \|19	2							19	2
1996–97 \|28	2							28	2
1997–98 \|18	2					0	0	18	2
1998–99 \|5	2					\|1	0	6	2
colspan="2"\|Total !85\|\|11\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|1\|\|0\|\|86\|\|11
rowspan="3"\|West Ham United \|1998–99 \|rowspan="2"\|Premier League \|13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	0
1999–2000 \|25	1	1	0	3	0	3	1	32	2
colspan="2"\|Total !38\|\|1\|\|1\|\|0\|\|3\|\|0\|\|3\|\|1\|\|45\|\|2
rowspan="3"\|Lyon \|2000–01 \|rowspan="2"\|Division 1 \|25	1	3	0	3	0	8	1	39	2
2001–02 \|18	2	0	0	0	0	8	0	26	2
colspan="2"\|Total !43\|\|3\|\|3\|\|0\|\|3\|\|0\|\|16\|\|1\|\|65\|\|4
Manchester City (loan) \|2002–03 \|Premier League \|35	9	1	0	2	0	0	0	38	9
colspan="3"\|Career total !201\|\|24\|\|5\|\|0\|\|8\|\|0\|\|20\|\|2\|\|234\|\|26

=International=

National team\|\|Year\|\|Apps\|\|Goals
class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" \|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year{{cite web \|first=Roberto \|last=Mamrud \|url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/mvfoe-intl.html \|title=Marc-Vivien Foé – International appearances \|publisher=Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation \|date=30 October 2014 \|access-date=28 June 2016}}
rowspan="11"\|Cameroon \|1993	2	0
1994	6	0
1995	2	1
1996	4	0
1997	6	0
1998	5	0
1999	2	0
2000	8	3
2001	9	2
2002	14	2
2003	4	0
colspan="2"\|Total\|\|62\|\|8

=International goals=

:Cameroon score listed first, score column indicates score after each Foé goal.

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" \|+ International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
scope=col\|No. !scope=col data-sort-type=date\|Date !scope=col\|Venue !scope=col\|Cap !scope=col\|Opponent !scope=col\|Score !scope=col\|Result !scope=col\|Competition
scope=row\|1 \|24 December 1995\|\|Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon\|\|10\|\|{{fb\|Liberia}}\|\|1–0\|\|1–0\|\|Friendly
scope=row\|2 \|22 January 2000\|\|rowspan=2\|Accra Sports Stadium, Accra, Ghana\|\|28\|\|{{fb\|Ghana}}\|\|1–0\|\|1–1\|\|rowspan=2\|2000 African Cup of Nations
scope=row\|3 \|6 February 2000\|\|31\|\|{{fb\|Algeria}}\|\|2–0\|\|2–1
scope=row\|4 \|19 April 2000\|\|rowspan=2\|Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon\|\|34\|\|{{fb\|Somalia}}\|\|2–0\|\|3–0\|\|rowspan=3\|2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
scope=row\|5 \|1 July 2001\|\|42\|\|{{fb\|Togo}}\|\|2–0\|\|2–0
scope=row\|6 \|14 July 2001\|\|Independence Stadium, Lusaka, Zambia\|\|43\|\|{{fb\|Zambia}}\|\|1–0\|\|2–2
scope=row\|7 \|7 January 2002\|\|Stade du 4 Août, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso\|\|45\|\|{{fb\|Burkina Faso}}\|\|1–0\|\|3–1\|\|Friendly
scope=row\|8 \|7 February 2002\|\|Stade du 26 Mars, Bamako, Mali\|\|51\|\|{{fb\|Mali}}\|\|3–0\|\|3–0\|\|2002 African Cup of Nations

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"

|+ International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition

scope=col|No.

!scope=col data-sort-type=date|Date

!scope=col|Venue

!scope=col|Cap

!scope=col|Opponent

!scope=col|Score

!scope=col|Result

!scope=col|Competition

scope=row|1

|24 December 1995||Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon||10||{{fb|Liberia}}||1–0||1–0||Friendly

scope=row|2

|22 January 2000||rowspan=2|Accra Sports Stadium, Accra, Ghana||28||{{fb|Ghana}}||1–0||1–1||rowspan=2|2000 African Cup of Nations

scope=row|3

|6 February 2000||31||{{fb|Algeria}}||2–0||2–1

scope=row|4

|19 April 2000||rowspan=2|Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon||34||{{fb|Somalia}}||2–0||3–0||rowspan=3|2002 FIFA World Cup qualification

scope=row|5

|1 July 2001||42||{{fb|Togo}}||2–0||2–0

scope=row|6

|14 July 2001||Independence Stadium, Lusaka, Zambia||43||{{fb|Zambia}}||1–0||2–2

scope=row|7

|7 January 2002||Stade du 4 Août, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso||45||{{fb|Burkina Faso}}||1–0||3–1||Friendly

scope=row|8

|7 February 2002||Stade du 26 Mars, Bamako, Mali||51||{{fb|Mali}}||3–0||3–0||2002 African Cup of Nations

Honours

;Canon Yaoundé

Cameroonian Cup: 1993

;Lens

Division 1: 1997–98{{cite news |first=Olivier |last=Villepreux |title=Les sang et or champions sur le fil devant Metz. Au bonheur de Lens |url=http://www.liberation.fr/sports/1998/05/11/foot-les-sang-et-or-champions-sur-le-fil-devant-metzau-bonheur-de-lens_238437 |website=Libération |date=11 May 1998 |access-date=29 June 2016 |language=fr}}

;West Ham United

UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1999{{cite news |first=Trevor |last=Haylett |title=West Ham unable to master a meaty Metz challenge |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/west-ham-unable-to-master-a-meaty-metz-challenge-1.215621 |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=11 August 1999 |access-date=29 June 2016}}{{cite news |first=Steve |last=Tongue |title=Hammers storm Metz citadel |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-hammers-storm-metz-citadel-1115281.html |website=The Independent |date=25 August 1999 |access-date=29 June 2016}}

;Lyon

Division 1: 2001–02{{cite news |first=Peter |last=Berlin |title=Lyon catches Lens to grab French title |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/06/sports/06iht-soccer_ed3__1.html?pagewanted=all |website=The New York Times |date=6 May 2002 |access-date=29 June 2016}}
Coupe de la Ligue: 2000–01{{cite news |title=Ambitious Lyon clinches first trophy in 28 years |url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ambitious-lyon-clinches-first-trophy-in-28-years.aspx?pageID=438&n=ambitious-lyon-clinches-first-trophy-in-28-years-2001-05-07 |website=Hürriyet Daily News |agency=Reuters |date=7 May 2001 |access-date=29 June 2016}}

;Cameroon

Africa Cup of Nations: 2000,{{cite news |title=Cameroon victorious on penalty kicks |url=http://espn.go.com/soccer/news/2000/0213/354502.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001117041100/http://espn.go.com/soccer/news/2000/0213/354502.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 November 2000 |publisher=ESPN |agency=Reuters|date=13 February 2000 |access-date=29 June 2016}} 2002{{cite news |first=James |last=Copnall |title=Cameroon are hot from the spot |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2002/feb/11/newsstory.sport3 |website=The Guardian |date=11 February 2002 |access-date=29 June 2016}}

Individual

FIFA Confederations Cup Bronze Ball: 2003{{cite news|title=FIFA Confederations Cup official awards |url=https://www.fifa.com/en/display/mrel,70513.html |website=Fédération Internationale de Football Association |date=29 June 2003 |access-date=29 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030704024400/http://www.fifa.com/en/display/mrel%2C70513.html |archive-date=4 July 2003 |url-status=dead }}