Roger Milla

For other people with similar names, see Roger Miller (disambiguation).

Roger Milla
Milla in 2008
Personal information
Full name Albert Roger Miller[1]
Date of birth (1952-05-20) 20 May 1952 (age 72)
Place of birth Yaoundé, Cameroon
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
1965–1967 Eclair de Douala
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1967–1970 Eclair de Douala
1970–1974 Léopard Douala 116 (89)
1974–1977 Tonnerre 87 (69)
1977–1979 Valenciennes 28 (6)
1979–1980 Monaco 17 (2)
1980–1984 Bastia 113 (35)
1984–1986 Saint-Étienne 59 (31)
1986–1989 Montpellier 95 (37)
1989–1990 Saint-Pierroise 23 (8)
1990–1994 Tonnerre 116 (89)
1994–1995 Pelita Jaya 23 (23)
1995–1996 Putra Samarinda 12 (18)
Total 666+ (405+)
International career
1973–1994 Cameroon 102 (36)
Managerial career
2001–2007 Montpellier (coaching staff)
2007–2011 Tonnerre
2011–2012 Tonnerre (director of football)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Cameroon
Africa Cup of Nations
Winner 1984 Ivory Coast
Winner 1988 Morocco
Runner-up Egypt 1986
Afro-Asian Cup of Nations
Winner 1985 Cameroon
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Albert Roger Miller (born 20 May 1952), known as Roger Milla, is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He was one of the first African players to be a major star on the international stage. He played in three World Cups for the Cameroon national team.

He achieved international stardom at 38 years old, an age at which most forwards have retired, by scoring four goals at the 1990 FIFA World Cup and thus becoming the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history.[2][3][4][5] He helped Cameroon become the first African team to reach the World Cup quarter-finals. Four years later, at the age of 42, Milla broke his own record as the oldest goalscorer in World Cup by scoring against Russia in the 1994 FIFA World Cup.[6]

Milla frequently celebrated goals by running to the corner flag and performing a dance similar to the lambada.[7] In 2004 he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.[6] In 2007, the Confederation of African Football named Milla the best African player of the previous 50 years.[8] At the time of his retirement, he was regarded as the all-time topscorer from African region in FIFA World Cup finals with five goals and his record was eventually surpassed by Ghana's Asamoah Gyan.

  1. ^ "Décret du 14 avril 2006 portant promotion et nomination" [Decree of 14 April 2006 on promotion and appointment]. Journal Officiel de la République Française (in French). 2006 (91): 5760. 16 April 2006. PREX0609207D. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  2. ^ "Milla: My record will be very difficult to beat". FIFA. Archived from the original on 17 December 2022.
  3. ^ AFP. "Meet the man who put African football on world map". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 17 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Cameroon great Roger Milla remembers FIFA World Cup magic as history beckons for Africa". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  5. ^ Johannesburg, Tom Dart. "Roger Milla says of African toil: I told you so". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 17 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Roger Milla, the pride of the Indomitable Lions". FIFA. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
  7. ^ Jon Carter (26 May 2010). "First XI: World Cup celebrations". ESPN. Archived from the original on 3 June 2010.
  8. ^ "Milla is Caf's best from 50 years". BBC Sport. 15 January 2007. Archived from the original on 2 June 2014. Retrieved 1 June 2014.