Kolo Muani began his professional career atNantes, where he scored 23 goals in 87 first-team appearances and won theCoupe de France. In 2022, he joined German clubEintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer. He went on to score 26 goals in 50 matches in one year at the club before returning to France with Paris Saint-Germain in a €75 million deal.
Kolo Muani played youth international football for France atunder-21 andOlympic levels. He made his senior international debut in September 2022, and was a member of the France squad that were runners-up at the2022 FIFA World Cup.
Randal Kolo Muani[2] was born on 5 December 1998 inBondy, Seine-Saint-Denis,[3] to parents born inKinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.[citation needed] He holds both French and Congolese nationalities.[4][5][6] He acquired French nationality on 3 September 2008, through the effect of his parents' naturalization.[7]
In his childhood, Kolo Muani played for severalParisian teams, including Villepinte,[8] Tremblay andTorcy.[9] During the same period, he also trained withItalian teamsVicenza andCremonese,[10] before joiningNantes' youth academy in 2015.[11] Kolo Muani received his first call-up to the Nantes first team on 12 February 2017, for a match againstMarseille[12] and on 4 June 2018, he signed his first professional contract with his childhood club, Nantes.[13] He made his professional debut in a 3–0Ligue 1 loss toSaint-Étienne on 30 November 2018.[14] On 21 January 2019, he made his first start in a 1–0 loss toAngers.[15]
In August 2019, Kolo Muani joinedBoulogne on a season-long loan deal.[16] On 30 August, he made his first appearance with the club in aChampionnat National match againstAvranches, and he scored his first goal for the club on 21 February 2020.[17] At Boulogne, he demonstrated his talents and contributed three goals and five assists, helping the club reach third place in the standings in the tournament, which ended prematurely due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[18][19]
Kolo Muani returned to Nantes for the2020–21 season and scored his first goal forLes Canaris in a 3–1 win againstBrest.[20] He scored 9 goals and provided as many assists in 37 league appearances, but the club had a challenging season and finished in seventeenth place. As a result, they landed in theLigue 1 relegation/promotion play-offs againstToulouse, winners of theLigue 2 play-offs.[21] During the play-offs, Kolo Muani scored one goal in two matches, helping Nantes avoid relegation.[22] During the following season, he won his first trophy with the club, the2021–22 Coupe de France.[23][24]
On 4 March 2022,Bundesliga clubEintracht Frankfurt signed Kolo Muani on a pre-contract agreement ahead of the expiration of his Nantes contract.[25] He signed a five-year deal with the club.[26] On 26 October 2022, he scored his firstUEFA Champions League goal in a 2–1 win overMarseille,[27] and on 1 November, he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory overSporting CP, securing his club's qualification to theknockout phase for the first time in the Champions League era.[28]
On 7 February 2023, Kolo Muani scored his first double in theDFB-Pokal in a 4–2 home victory overDarmstadt.[29] Eleven days later, he scored his 10th goal in theBundesliga againstWerder Bremen.[30] On 4 April, he scored a brace in 93 seconds in a 2–0 win overUnion Berlin in the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals.[31] In his first season in the Bundesliga, Kolo Muani scored 15 goals and provided 11 assists, which made him the league's third-highest scorer and second-highest assister.[32]
On 29 August 2023, in an interview withSky Germany, Kolo Muani publicly revealed that Ligue 1 clubParis Saint-Germain (PSG) had made a "record offer" to sign him, and stated that he would "like to move to Paris", having informed Eintracht Frankfurt directors of his desire to leave the club.[33] He subsequently refused to train with Frankfurt, and was left out of the team's squad for a match againstLevski Sofia.[34] Sporting directorMarkus Kroesche condemned Kolo Muani's behavior, saying that it would have "no influence on transfer business".[35]
On 1 September 2023, Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain signed Kolo Muani for €75 million, with an additional €15 million in potential bonuses.[36] He joined the club on a five-year contract.[37]
On 15 September, Kolo Muani made his PSG debut as a substitute in a 3–2 defeat toNice, assistingKylian Mbappé's second goal of the match.[38] He made his Champions League debut and first start for the club in a 2–0 win overBorussia Dortmund four days later.[39] On 24 September, Kolo Muani scored his first goal for PSG in a 4–0 win overLe Classique rivalsMarseille; he also assistedGonçalo Ramos's second goal in the same match.[40] On 25 October, Kolo Muani scored his first Champions League goal for PSG in a 3–0 win overAC Milan.[41] By the end of the season, he had scored nine goals and provided six assists in 40 games for PSG, contributing to successes in Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, and theTrophée des Champions.[42] Most observers concluded that he had an underwhelming campaign, with Kolo Muani himself saying that he wished to "quickly forget" his first season with PSG.[43][44][45]
On 23 January 2025, Kolo Muani was loaned toSerie A clubJuventus until the end of the season.[46] The club announced it had signed him for a €1 million fee with €2.6 million in additional costs, plus potential bonuses adding up to €2 million.[47]
On 25 January, Kolo Muani made his Juventus debut in a 2–1 defeat toNapoli, scoring the only Juventus goal.[48] On 2 February, he scored a brace in a 4–1 win againstEmpoli at theJuventus Stadium.[49] On 7 February, he scored another brace in a 2–1 away victory againstComo, and by finding the net in his first three Serie A games, he matched a feat last achieved for the club byRoberto Baggio in 1990.[50]
On 1 September 2025, Kolo Muani joinedTottenham Hotspur on loan for the rest of the season.[51][52] Kolo Muani made his first appearance for the club on 16 September as a 77th minute substitute in a Champions League league phase match againstVillarreal.[53] However, he subsequently suffered a dead leg following a training session collision with teammatePape Matar Sarr.[54] Kolo Muani returned to training in October, soon after playing 45 minutes in abehind-closed-doors friendly againstWatford on 10 October.[55] Kolo Muani made his return and firstPremier League appearance on 19 October as a 79th minute substitute in Tottenham's 1-2 loss toAston Villa.[56] Kolo Muani made his first Premier League start the following week on 26 October, in Tottenham's 3–0 away win atEverton.[57]
Kolo Muani was a youth international for France. He played matches for his country'sunder-21 andOlympic national teams.[58]
On 15 September 2022, Kolo Muani received his first call-up to the seniorFrance national team for twoUEFA Nations League matches.[59] On 16 November 2022, he replacedChristopher Nkunku in France'sFIFA World Cup squad after the latter was forced to withdraw due to injury.[60][61] On 14 December, Kolo Muani scored his first goal for France, in the semi-final match againstMorocco, slotting in a deflected shot fromKylian Mbappé.[62] He also became the third fastest player to score a goal as a substitute in the World Cup, after 44 seconds, only behindRichard Morales andEbbe Sand.[62][63]
In thefinal againstArgentina, he won a penalty which was converted into a goal by Kylian Mbappé, then scored in the penalty shootout which ended in a 4–2 defeat.[64] During the match, past the 120th minute and into the final stoppage time before penalties, Kolo Muani had an opportunity to score the go-ahead goal and potentially win the World Cup for France, but it was saved byEmiliano Martínez in what has been described as the "new 'Save of the Century'".[65] In February 2023, Kolo Muani recalled the moment by saying, "I could have lobbed him, I could have given the ball to Kylian [Mbappé], but in the moment, I didn't see him. After when you see the video, you see that there were other options, but it's too late, you cannot do anything. I still have it in my throat and it'll be there for life."[66]
On 21 November 2023, Kolo Muani scored his first goal for France after the 2022 World Cup in a 2–2 draw away toGreece inUEFA Euro 2024 qualifying.[67] On 17 May 2024, he was included in France's squad forUEFA Euro 2024.[68] In the round of 16 againstBelgium on 1 July, Kolo Muani provoked an own goal after his shot was deflected into the Belgian net byJan Vertonghen, securing a 1–0 victory that put France in the quarter-finals.[69] On 9 July in the semi-finals, Kolo Muani scored the opening goal in a 2–1 defeat toSpain, a header assisted by a cross from Mbappé.[70] On 14 October, Kolo Muani scored his first internationalbrace in a 2–1 win over Belgium in theUEFA Nations League.[71] He finished 2024 as France's top scorer with six goals to his name.[72]
Kolo Muani's playing style has drawn comparisons to the legendary French strikerThierry Henry. Like Henry, Kolo Muani began his career as a wide player known for his pace and trickery, but eventually transitioned into a center-forward position. Both players have a similar height of around 6'2" and possess rangy physiques. Kolo Muani's languid dribbling style and impressive speed are also reminiscent of Henry's style of play, particularly during his younger days. He has a remarkable strength on the ball and a playful approach to the game that can leave defenders trailing behind him.[citation needed]
France national team coach,Didier Deschamps, acknowledged Kolo Muani's many qualities, describing him as a player who has a significant presence, runs in behind from deep, and has a good finishing ability.[citation needed]
Frankfurt's head coach,Oliver Glasner, praised Kolo Muani's speed, tackling, dribbling, and finishing skills, noting that he is an asset to the team.[citation needed]
Markus Krösche, Eintracht Frankfurt's board member for sport, expressed his excitement for Kolo Muani's potential, stating that his speed, robustness, finishing skills, and tactical versatility are qualities that the team needs. He further noted that Kolo Muani's potential had attracted the interest of many clubs, and the team is delighted that he has chosen to take his next steps with them.[73]