When PSG won a second successive Champions League title in May, French football was established as the boss of Europe. And then it was over to the national team to take on the world.
Didier Deschamps’ side fell just short, losing to eventual winners Spain in the semi-final, though they played some of the best attacking football in the competition until that point. And with PSG players in Les Bleus’ attacking unit, the Ligue 1 talent was showcased on the world stage.
But there were other players from the French top-flight, delighting the fans of other teams, including the two finalists. So here is the SBOTOP pick of five stars whose reputations soared over the past few weeks.
Fabian Ruiz: PSG and Spain
World Cup winners Spain were blessed with a collection of the best footballers on the planet, many of them from Barcelona, but some pulled from other top European clubs, and PSG midfielder Fabian Ruiz was a key part of Luis de la Fuente’s successful campaign.
A left-footed midfielder, Fabian can play in an advanced position or more defensively, and he was deployed in the World Cup final to nullify or reduce the threat of Lionel Messi, which he did to superb effect as the Albiceleste failed to register a single shot in normal time, and Messi cut a lonesome figure.
His vision in passing and close ball skills make Fabian an attacking threat too, and he has scored seven goals in 50 games for La Roja, bagging the first in Spain’s quarter-final 2-1 win over Belgium.
Nicolas Tagliafico: Lyon and Argentina
Runners-up Argentina played their football with, shall we say, impressive pragmatism, and that took Lionel Scaloni’s team all the way to the final before Spain, who were just too good for them. But the Albiceleste did tread a close line between employing the “dark arts” and going over the top, and that cost them in the final, as they ended up with two red cards.
But Argentina’s semi-final win over England was a masterclass in defensive play. When their European opponents are worn down. Argentina hit them with ruthless efficiency, and they were just too good for the Three Lions. Lyon star Nicolas Tagliafico was excellent, as his brilliant positional sense and limitless energy made life tough for the England front line.
Ousmane Dembele: PSG and France
Another PSG player to impress in the US was 2025 Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who shook off an injury-hit domestic campaign to take the World Cup by storm, scoring and assisting in France’s 3-0 win over Iraq, and then hitting a sensational first-half hat-trick as Les Bleus beat Norway 4-1 in their final group game, winning the Man of the Match award.
He is one of only 11 players to have won the FIFA World Cup, UEFA Champions League, and Ballon d’Or in their career, while his former teammate and international captain Kylian Mbappe has spent two years at Real Madrid without a league or European title.
Dembele is back and ready to make some spectacular Ligue 1 2026 highlights over the next few months, which is bad news for defenders in the French top-flight.
Folarin Balogun: AS Monaco and USA
With three goals in five games, Balogun was the Stars and Stripes’ biggest goal threat and best attacker at the World Cup, and the 25-year-old certainly got his fair share of publicity.
The Monaco star picked up the wrong kind of headlines when he was red-carded against Bosnia and Herzegovina. But then, his dismissal was bizarrely overturned, and he featured in the Stars and Stripes’ Round of 16 loss to Belgium. His name is well known outside France and the USA now, and Balogun has a bright future ahead of him.
Willian Pacho: PSG and Ecuador
PSG’s third player on my list is centre-back Willian Pacho, who was a bright spot for Ecuador, who eventually lost to Mexico in the Round of 32. He joined PSG in a €40 million move from Eintracht Frankfurt in 2024 as the club’s first Ecuadorian player, and now at 24 years old, he has grown into one of the most dominant defenders in world football.
La Tricolor conceded just five goals in 18 games in qualifying, which earned them a second-place finish in the CONMEBOL table, ahead of Brazil, Colombia, and Uruguay and a Round of 32 finish at the finals was certainly well earned. The Ligue 1 2026 betting odds say the Parisiens are the hot favourites to win the French crown again next year. And with Ruiz, Dembele, and Pacho in their ranks, it’s no wonder.
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