Tell us what the Clairefontaine National Football Center looks like

The National Football Center (CNF) has been the headquarters of the French football teams since its founding in 1988.

The players of the French football team will gather from Wednesday May 29, at Clairefontaine. It is the temple of football. At the entrance there is a giant replica of the World Cup trophy and two big stars (one for each victory of the Blues at the world championship. There are a total of ten football fields, two amphitheaters, a medical center, a restaurant, administrative buildings spread over 62 hectares, and of course… The castle). Its famous stairs look a bit like climbing the steps at the Cannes festival when Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Bappé, Olivier Giroud arrive. The rest of the time, it’s more like the Star Academy football version.

It’s a real bubble, a cocoon in the heart of the forest and the regional natural area of ​​the Haute Vallée de Chevreuse. Originally, this Montjoie castle was a hunting lodge. The players are completely isolated, that’s the goal. Take them out of the luxurious daily life of big clubs to create a phase of concentration, and above all a group. Every day, it’s breakfast together, training, treatments, a press conference too, or a promotional operation. To occupy these long days at the castle, card games, films and consoles are there.

At Clairefontaine, there aren’t just star gatherings either. Since its creation in 1988 by Fernand Sastre, president of the French Football Federation at the time, this center has become a tool for training excellence in football, from the youngest (the first courses are accessible from 8 years old), to the national selection. Coaches, referees and physical trainers follow training at Clairefontaine. The site has become an international reference. French Rugby was inspired by it for Marcoussis. Handball to create its center in Créteil.