Roger Boli
Encyclopedia
Roger Boli is a French
former footballer
who played striker
for clubs in the French and British leagues. He is currently an agent
in France
.
Boli, older brother of Basile
, started his career with AJ Auxerre
, where he spent four seasons. A season at Lille OSC
followed, before a long spell with RC Lens
. During his seven seasons with the club, Boli won promotion to Ligue 1
, and finished joint-top scorer in the 1993-94 season. A season was spent with Le Havre AC
before moving to England
with Walsall
in 1997. Boli's twelve league goals with the Saddlers drew attention from Scottish
side Dundee United
and Boli moved north in a £150k deal in 1998. Injuries restricted him to just three league appearances, although he did score once in the Scottish League Cup against Stirling Albion, and within three months a £100k move saw him head to AFC Bournemouth. Boli's seven appearances would be his last before retiring in the summer of 1999.
In May 2001, Boli arranged a benefit match - Le Jubilé de Roger Boli - which saw past and present Lens players play against a team of French superstars (Zinedine Zidane
, Marcel Desailly
, Patrick Vieira
, Eric Cantona
, Jean-Pierre Papin
, etc.). Lens won 7-2, with the match proceeds going to the Raoul-Follereau association.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
former footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
who played striker
Striker
Forwards, also known as strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals...
for clubs in the French and British leagues. He is currently an agent
Sports agent
A sports agent procures and negotiates employment and endorsement contracts for an athlete.In return, the sports agent generally receives between 4 and 10% of the athlete's playing contract, and 10 to 20% of the athlete's endorsement contract, though these figures vary...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Boli, older brother of Basile
Basile Boli
Basile Boli is a French former footballer and current television sports presenter.-Career:Although born in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, Boli moved to France at an early age and began his career in local youth football in Paris before signing for AJ Auxerre in 1982...
, started his career with AJ Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
, where he spent four seasons. A season at Lille OSC
Lille OSC
LOSC Lille Métropole is a French association football club based in Lille. The club was founded in 1944 as a result of a merger and currently play in Ligue 1, the first division of French football. Lille plays its home matches at the Stade Lille-Metropole in nearby Villeneuve-d'Ascq. In 2012, the...
followed, before a long spell with RC Lens
RC Lens
Racing Club de Lens is a French association football club based in the northern city of Lens in the Pas-de-Calais department. Its nickname, sang et or , comes from its traditional colours of red and gold. Their primary rivals are their northern neighbors Lille OSC, whom they contest the Derby du...
. During his seven seasons with the club, Boli won promotion to Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
, and finished joint-top scorer in the 1993-94 season. A season was spent with Le Havre AC
Le Havre AC
Le Havre Athletic Club Football Association is a French association football club based in Le Havre. The club was founded originally as an athletics and rugby club in 1872, thus making it the oldest association football and rugby club registered in France...
before moving to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with Walsall
Walsall F.C.
Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...
in 1997. Boli's twelve league goals with the Saddlers drew attention from Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
side Dundee United
Dundee United F.C.
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club located in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923...
and Boli moved north in a £150k deal in 1998. Injuries restricted him to just three league appearances, although he did score once in the Scottish League Cup against Stirling Albion, and within three months a £100k move saw him head to AFC Bournemouth. Boli's seven appearances would be his last before retiring in the summer of 1999.
In May 2001, Boli arranged a benefit match - Le Jubilé de Roger Boli - which saw past and present Lens players play against a team of French superstars (Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Yazid Zidane is a retired French footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Zidane was a leading figure of a generation of French players that won the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship...
, Marcel Desailly
Marcel Desailly
Marcel Desailly is a retired Ghanaian born French footballer and star of the France national football team squad, with whom he won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000...
, Patrick Vieira
Patrick Vieira
Patrick Vieira is a retired French footballer of Senegalese descent who is the Football Development Executive at Manchester City....
, Eric Cantona
Eric Cantona
Eric Daniel Pierre Cantona is a French actor and former French international footballer. He played for Auxerre, Martigues, Marseille, Bordeaux, Montpellier, Nîmes and Leeds United before ending his professional footballing career at Manchester United, where he won four Premier League titles in...
, Jean-Pierre Papin
Jean-Pierre Papin
Jean-Pierre Papin is a former French professional football player who was European Footballer of the Year in 1991.Papin achieved his greatest success while playing for Olympique Marseille between 1986 and 1992...
, etc.). Lens won 7-2, with the match proceeds going to the Raoul-Follereau association.
External links
- Interview (Translated from French)
- Roger Boli information (Translated from French)