Are you interested to know some fun facts about Olivier Giroud?
French football star Olivier Giroud was born Francisco Olivier Jonathan Giroud on September 30, 1986 in Chambery, France. He is Serie A club AC Milan’s striker and also represents the French national football team.
Giroud is best noted not only for his physicality but his aerial skill as well – things that make him such an intimidating presence in the attacking third of the pitch.
Olivier Giroud is one of the best strikers today. His aesthetically significant goals, acrobatic strikes, physical strength, and reliable goal-scoring skill have made him one of the only few footballers to be awarded the FIFA Puskás Award.
Read on to learn more fun facts about Olivier Giroud.
Things you'll find in this article
- 12 Fun Facts About Olivier Giroud
- 1. Olivier Giroud grew up in Froges, France
- 2. His older brother was also a football player
- 3. The Girouds are of Italian descent
- 4. Olivier Giroud started his football journey when he was 7 years old
- 5. Giroud made his senior team debut in 2006 and his first professional goal a year later
- 5. Giroud made his first international football debut in the late 2011
- 6. The media dubbed Giroud as a “target man” and a “super sub”
- 7. He has also been described by football afficionados as one of the most underrated strikers in the world
- 8. He is one of France’s top 10 goal-scorers of all time
- 9. He married an American who still uses her United States passport
- 10. Olivier Giroud is scared of Alf the Alien from the `80s TV show
- 11. Giroud was a religious man
- 12. He is also a model
12 Fun Facts About Olivier Giroud
1. Olivier Giroud grew up in Froges, France
Olivier Giroud was born in the city of Chambery, but he was raised in a village about half an hour away. His middle-income parents – who were both football fans – raised him and his brothers in the French village of Froges in the Rhône-Alpes region.
Guroud’s parents were both very supportive of him when he decided to pursue a career in the sport, starting in 1992 with Olympique Club de Froges, his hometown club.
2. His older brother was also a football player
Giroud’s older brother, Romain, was also a footballer, having played at the Auxerre academy and having represented France at under-15 and under-17 level. However, the older Giroud sibling dropped a potential professional career to study and become a nutritionist.
3. The Girouds are of Italian descent
Olivier Giroud’s family has Italian roots courtesy of both his grandmothers, Antonia Gaiatto and Yvonne Avogadro. His two grandfathers, Jean Arnaud-Goddet and Henri Giroud, are both French.
4. Olivier Giroud started his football journey when he was 7 years old
Olivier Giroud was 7 years old when he joined his hometown club where he trained for 6 years before relocating to Grenoble to join its youth ranks and go professional.
As a young footballer, Giroud played lots of matches and did well at his sport from 1999 through 2005. His performance with the Grenoble team got him endorsed to the seniors, where he managed to secure 15 goals in 15 games as the reserve team of the club during the Championnat de France amateur II.
5. Giroud made his senior team debut in 2006 and his first professional goal a year later
His first appearance on the field as a senior for Grenoble took place in a Ligue 2 game against Geugnon. The game result was a draw at 1 – 1 final score.
He played for a whole 90 minutes for the first time a few months later, against Niort. The Grenoble team lost with a 2 – 1 final score.
Giroud’s first professional goal came the following year during a game against Le Harve.
5. Giroud made his first international football debut in the late 2011
It was on November 11, 2011 that Olivier Giroud made his first international debut on the football scene. He was offered to join the French national team playing against the United States in a friendly match. The friendly game resulted in France emerging as the winner with a 1 – 0 score.
Three months later, Giroud bagged his first goal for the French national team in another friendly match – this time against Germany. France won that game with a 2 – 1 final score.
6. The media dubbed Giroud as a “target man” and a “super sub”
Although Giroud usually plays as a center-forward and a striker, he is also very much capable in many positions in the offense. He sometimes plays as a second striker and even a false 9.
Thanks to his playing style and inclination to score goals from off the bench, he has been dubbed by the media as a “target man” and as a “super sub.”
7. He has also been described by football afficionados as one of the most underrated strikers in the world
As a striker, Olivier Giroud is hard-working. He has shown to be particularly reliable when it comes to goal scoring – all due to his size and physical strength as well as his powerful shot, heading accuracy, and power in holding up the ball with his back to goal.
Giroud is also known for his link-up plays and his ability to create space for his teammates with his skillful movement off the ball. He is as well noted for making runs to the front post that outsmart his opponents.
8. He is one of France’s top 10 goal-scorers of all time
Olivier Giroud is known to be a clinical finisher, having scored more than 200 goals in his career in the sport – at the club and international competitions.
Since his debut for AC Milan in 2021, Giroud has made 38 appearances and during those appearances he has managed to score and assist a total of 16 goals.
The French athlete has also scored 48 international goals in 112 games playing for the French national team.
These feats have earned Giroud a spot on the list of top 10 French goal-scorers of all time. In fact, he is currently the holder of the national team’s highest goal-scoring record with 53 goals. Thierry Henry follows next with 51 goals and Antoine Griezmann comes in third place with 42 goals.
9. He married an American who still uses her United States passport
Olivier Giroud and his American wife Jennifer tied the knot in 2011, while he was with the French club Montpellier.
Jennifer Giroud keeps a low profile and has made very few public appearances with her famous French husband. It is said that Mrs. Giroud still uses her American passport.
They have 4 children together – 2 girls and 2 boys.
10. Olivier Giroud is scared of Alf the Alien from the `80s TV show
Giroud has revealed in a TV show that he is quite scared of Alf the Alien, from the `80s TV show Alf, saying the character was so hideous it scared him as a young boy.
The French football star also stated that his older brothers used to tease him that Alf would get him. It obviously went a little too far because the phobia has stuck with the youngest Giroud brother.
11. Giroud was a religious man
A proud Catholic, Giroud wears a tattoo on his right arm, which is a Latin verse from the Holy Bible.
His tattoo is a very popular verse from Psalms 23, which says: “Dominus regit me et nihil mihi deerit.” In English, the beautiful verse means “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
12. He is also a model
Olivier Giroud is not only gifted with football skills but high genetic quotient as well.
In 2013, he posed naked for a French charity calendar called Dieux du Stade, which always features nude sportsmen. Dieux du Stade is sold for charity.
His striking good looks also bagged him a modeling contract with Hugo Boss. The year 2014 saw him becoming the ambassador for the brand’s Boss Bottled fragrance for men.
Giroud claims in a GQ interview that he draws inspiration from David Beckham’s iconic style for how he looks.
Hi, I’m Christine – a full-time traveler and career woman. Although I’m from the Philippines, my location independent career took me to over 40 countries and lived in 4 continents in the last 10 years, including France. A self-proclaimed Francophile, I love everything France.