Former France midfielder Payet retires from football

## Summary
Advertisement Sport Former France midfielder Payet retires from football FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Brasileiro Championship - Corinthians v Vasco da Gama - Neo Quimica Arena, Sao Paulo, Brazil - November 24, 2024 Vasco da Gama's Dimitri Payet during the warm up before the match REUTERS/Carla Carniel/File Photo 23 Mar 2026 03:02AM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST March 22 : Former France midfielder Dimitri Payet announced his retirement from professional football on Sunday after a 21-year career. I managed to play for the national squad, and today is the end of a beautiful journey." Despite a career without a major trophy, Payet established himself as a premier set-piece specialist at both Marseille and Premier League side West Ham United. (Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne) Source: Reuters Newsletter Recommended Read Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Sign up for our newsletters Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox Subscribe here Get the CNA app Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories Download here Get WhatsApp alerts Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app Join here Advertisement Also worth reading Content is loading...

## Article Content
Advertisement
Sport
Former France midfielder Payet retires from football
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Brasileiro Championship - Corinthians v Vasco da Gama - Neo Quimica Arena, Sao Paulo, Brazil - November 24, 2024 Vasco da Gama's Dimitri Payet during the warm up before the match REUTERS/Carla Carniel/File Photo
23 Mar 2026 03:02AM
Bookmark
Bookmark
Share
WhatsApp
Telegram
Facebook
Twitter
Email
LinkedIn
Set CNA as your preferred source on Google
Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results.
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
March 22 : Former France midfielder Dimitri Payet announced his retirement from professional football on Sunday after a 21-year career.
The 38-year-old, who has been without a club for nine months following a stint with Brazilian side Vasco da Gama, made the announcement during an emotional live interview at halftime of the Ligue 1 match between hosts Olympique de Marseille and Lille at the Stade Velodrome.
Payet struggled to contain his tears as he confirmed the decision at the home of the club where he enjoyed his most successful years across two separate spells.
The Reunion-born player began his professional career at FC Nantes in 2005. He went on to earn 38 caps for France, scoring eight goals, and was a prominent member of the squad that reached the final of the European Championship in 2016, where they were defeated 1-0 by Portugal after extra time.
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
"I want to take two minutes to thank everybody — to thank all those who shared these 20 years with me. It was something exceptional," he said.
"I come from an island and my dream was to become a professional. I made it and did it for 20 years at the highest level. I managed to play for the national squad, and today is the end of a beautiful journey."
Despite a career without a major trophy, Payet established himself as a premier set-piece specialist at both Marseille and Premier League side West Ham United.
(Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Source: Reuters
Newsletter
Recommended Read
Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read
A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Subscribe here
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Download here
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Join here
Advertisement
Also worth reading
Content is loading...
Advertisement
Expand to read the full story
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST

---

## Expert Analysis

### Merits
N/A

### Areas for Consideration
- CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less "I want to take two minutes to thank everybody — to thank all those who shared these 20 years with me.

### Implications
N/A

### Expert Commentary
This article covers fast, payet, cna topics. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 533.