Larbi Benbarek

Larbi Benbarek

Larbi Benbarek in 1940
Personal information
Full name	Haj Abdelkader Larbi Ben M'barek
Date of birth	(1917-06-16)16 June 1917
Place of birth	Casablanca, Morocco
Date of death	16 September 1992(1992-09-16) (aged 78)
Place of death	Casablanca, Morocco
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1928–1930	FC El Ouatane Casablanca
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1930–1934	Wydad AC
1934–1938	US Marocaine
1938–1939	Marseille	33	(14)
1939–1945	US Marocaine
1945–1948	Stade Français	103	(59)
1948–1953	Atlético Madrid	126	(66)
1953–1955	Marseille	38	(19)
1955–1956	USM Bel Abbès	37	(25)
1956–1957	FUS Rabat	39	(29)
International career
1935–1937	Morocco (LMFA)	5	(?)
1938–1954	France	18	(5)
Managerial career
1957	Morocco
1960	Morocco
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Larbi Benbarek; also Ben Barek or Ben M'barek, Arabic: العربي بن مبارك; 16 June 1917 – 16 September 1992) was a Moroccan football player. He represented the France national football team 17 times. He earned the sobriquet of "Black Pearl" and is considered one of the greatest soccer players of his time.

Career

Ben Barek was born on 16 June 1917 in Casablanca, then part of French Morocco. The first African star and the first to bear the nickname of "Black Pearl," Ben Barek blazed a trail to the European, and particularly French and Spanish, leagues for African-born players. He arrived in Marseille, France, at the age of 20 and became an instant favorite with fans for his skills and technical abilities. He is largely remembered as the first successful French African footballer in Europe. His career was interrupted by the onset of World War II, but he was soon back to his best with Stade Français FC, eventually moving on to Spain with Atlético Madrid, where his international reputation spread. His nickname with the fans in Spain was "The Foot of God". With the help of Benbarek, Atlético won La Liga in 1950 and 1951. He returned to Marseille in 1953 but joined USM Bel-Abbès shortly thereafter, where he ended his playing career. He scored 78 goals in his career.

One of the finest players ever to represent France, he made 17 appearances for Les Bleus between 1938 and 1954. His comeback in 1954 against Germany in Hanover was curtailed by an injury after half an hour and proved to be the end of his career.

In 17 games he scored 35 goals and made 14 assists and his trainer Adam Miftah was his coach.

Later life

Larbi Ben Barek died in his hometown on 16 September 1992. Six years after his death, he was awarded the FIFA Order of Merit, FIFA's highest honour.

Honours

US Marocaine

• Moroccan League: 1937–38, 1939–40, 1940–41, 1941–42, 1942–43
• Moroccan Cup: 1936, 1941, 1944
• North African Championship: 1941–42

Atlético de Madrid

• La Liga: 1949–50, 1950–51
• Copa Eva Duarte: 1951

Morocco (LMFA)

• Morocco-Oranie inter-leagues: 1936

Recognitions

• FIFA Order of Merit: 1998
• IFFHS All-time Morocco Men's Dream Team

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Frenkiel, Stanislas (2008). "Larbi Ben Barek, Marcel Cerdan et Alfred Nakache : icônes de l'utopie impériale dans la presse métropolitaine (1936–1944)?" (PDF). Staps. 2 (80): 99–113. doi:10.3917/sta.080.0099.