Blanco
Serge Blanco is one the best French fullbacks to ever play the game.
Serge Blanco Bio
Serge Blanco was one of the finest fullbacks of his generation. A giant of the game, he was nicknamed the ‘Pele of Rugby’ because of his skill with the ball in hand. Serge Blanco was inducted into the RugbyPass Hall of Fame in 2021.
Born in Venezuela on 31 August 1958, Serge Blanco moved to France at a young age and was raised in Biarritz. After excelling at the sport during his younger years, he signed to represent Biarritz in 1974. Following this, he stayed with the French club for his entire career. Sadly though, he never captured the French Championship with his hometown club. The closest he came was his final season with Biarritz in 1992, when they reached the final.
Although he failed to capture silverware with Biarritz, Serge Blanco was much more successful on the international stage. Between 1980 and 1991, he was capped 93 times by Les Bleus, with 81 of these coming at fullback.
While playing for France, Serge Blanco put in a number of memorable performances. Arguably, none were greater than his efforts in the 1987 Rugby World Cup semi-final, where he scored the deciding try against hosts Australia. However, he also put in many notable performances in the Five Nations Championship, particularly when France won the Grand Slam in 1981 and 1987.
Serge Blanco retired from international duty in 1991, after he’d captained France in the Rugby World Cup. At the time, he was France’s record appearance maker.
Since retiring from rugby in 1992, Serge Blanco has been inducted into both the International Rugby Hall of Fame and the IRB Hall of Fame. He’s also been the president of Biarritz and has helped guide the side to the French Championship in 2002 and 2006. Outside of rugby, he’s a successful businessman.
