Olivier Giroud Returns to Ligue 1 with Lille After LAFC Exit

French football striker Olivier Giroud is transferring to a significant move back to Ligue 1 with Lille following the completion of his tenure with Los Angeles FC (LAFC) in the Major League Soccer. The all-time leading scorer of France will play his final match at LAFC when the team hosts Vancouver Whitecaps this Sunday and will then sign a one-year contract with Lille next week.

• Olivier Giroud Returns to Ligue 1 with Lille After LAFC Stint Ends
• France’s Top Scorer Giroud Signs with Lille for One Year After MLS Exit
• Lille Reunites with Olivier Giroud to Bolster Attack for Europa League Push

In July 2024, Giroud left AC Milan in Italy to become part of LAFC. During his stay in LAFC, he registered five goals and three assists in 37 games, including those in the final of the U.S. Open Cup and Leagues Cup. Nevertheless, adaptation to physical requirements of MLS was not easy, and Giroud made a decision to go back to France, where he last played in Ligue 1 with Montpellier in 2012. In the same year, he made Montpellier at big shock by winning the Ligue 1 title as the leading scorer.

The fifth-placed team in the Ligue 1 last season Lille, having managed to qualify to Europa League, views Giroud as an older experience to boost their frontline. Having lost their star striker Jonathan David to a free agent, Lille wasted no time in acquiring Giroud, who had an obstacle of a whopping 3.68 million dollar salary at LAFC. Giroud has signed a one-year contract with the French team as transfer expert Fabrizio Romano confirmed.

Also Read: Real Madrid Beats RB Salzburg 3-0 to Advance in Club World Cup

The transfer of Giroud is a reunion of the former striker of Arsenal and Chelsea in the Ligue 1, where he won those seasons, three FA cup and one Champions League. With Lille preparing to contest the upcoming season, the expertise of Giroud may prove to be the difference-maker in the Europa League.