Wesley Tidjan Fofana (born 17 December 2000) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Chelsea.
Fofana was born in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France. His father is Ivorian, whereas his mother is French. One of six children, he started playing football at the age of six playing for Repos Vitrolles.
Fofana is Muslim. On 22 April 2021, he was substituted on the hour mark during Leicester's 3âÂÂ0 win against West Bromwich Albion, while Fofana was daytime fasting for the month of the Muslim Ramadan. In the next match against Crystal Palace, the game was paused after the half-hour mark for Fofana and Cheikhou Kouyaté to have some fluids to end their fast.
Fofana showed his support for the Palestinians after winning the 2021 English FA Cup Final by waving a large flag of Palestine, along with fellow Leicester City teammate Hamza Choudhury, during their team celebrations that took place amidst the 2021 Palestinian-Israeli clashes in May 2021.
In May 2025, he was banned from driving for two years after being found guilty of 8 counts of dangerous driving. In November 2025, Fofana received a further 18 month community order including 300 hours of community service. At that point, Fofana had 47 points on his licence.
Having been in the youth system since 2015, Fofana signed his first professional contract with Saint-ÃÂtienne on 15 May 2018. He made his debut for the club in a 3âÂÂ0 league win over Nice on 18 May 2019.
Fofana joined English Premier League club Leicester City on 2 October 2020, signing a five-year contract. The transfer fee paid to Saint-ÃÂtienne was reported as up to ã36.5 million. On 15 May 2021, he played in the 2021 FA Cup Final, which Leicester won 1âÂÂ0 for his first career honour in England. He and teammate Hamza Choudhury both celebrated draped in the flag of Palestine, during the 2021 IsraelâÂÂPalestine crisis.
On 21 May 2021, Fofana won Leicester City's Young Player of the Season award after being voted by the club's supporters.
On 4 August 2021, during a pre-season friendly against Villarreal, Fofana suffered a broken leg following a challenge by Fer Niño. On 17 March 2022, Fofana played his first match since his injury, scoring in a 2âÂÂ1 defeat to Stade Rennais in the UEFA Europa Conference League which secured Leicester's progress to the next round on a 3âÂÂ2 aggregate score.
On 31 August 2022, Fofana joined Premier League club Chelsea on a seven-year contract for a reported initial fee of ã70 million, plus ã5 million in add-ons. After signing for Chelsea, Fofana criticised his former club Leicester City, accusing them of issuing "false and misleading comments" during his protracted transfer. On 3 September, he made his debut for the club in a 2âÂÂ1 win at home against West Ham United in the Premier League. He scored his first goal for Chelsea on 5 October in a Champions League 3âÂÂ0 victory against AC Milan at Stamford Bridge, but suffered a major knee injury after 38 minutes, forcing him to be substituted off, and was ruled out until February 2023.
Fofana returned from injury on 18 February 2023, in a 1âÂÂ0 home defeat against Southampton. He scored his first ever Premier League goal against Leeds United on 4 March, in a 1âÂÂ0 home victory. On 18 July 2023, Chelsea revealed that Fofana had suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL) and had undergone a surgery. In late November 2023, it was announced that Fofana had been cleared to resume training following his recovery from the ACL injury. However, he was unable to feature in any match during the 2023âÂÂ24 season due to his injury.
On 21 February 2026, Fofana was shown a second yellow card after the foul he made on James Ward-Prowse in the 1âÂÂ1 home draw against Burnley. This made him the sixth Chelsea Premier League player to be sent off in this season.
In March 2023, Fofana received his first call-up to the France senior national team for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland. However, he was forced to withdraw from the squad due to injury. He made his debut three months later in a 3âÂÂ0 victory over Gibraltar.
Saint-ÃÂtienne
Leicester City
Chelsea
Individual