Ismaëlo Ganiou

About

Pierre-Ismaëlo Ganiou (born 14 March 2005) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Ligue 1 club Lens and the France under-21 national team. He previously played one match for the Burkina Faso national team.

Ganiou is a product of the youth academies of Lille Fives, Wasquehal and Lens, and was promoted to Lens’ reserves in 2022. On 5 July 2024, he signed his first professional contract with Lens until 2027. On 27 January 2025, he transferred to Padova and immediately joined Annecy in Ligue 2 on loan for the second half of the 2024–25 season. After his loan ended, he returned to Lens. On 8 August 2026, he extended his contract with Lens until 2030.

Born in France, Ganiou is of Burkinabe descent and holds dual French-Burkinabe citizenship. In May 2025, he was called up to the Burkina Faso national team for a set of friendlies. He debuted with Burkina Faso in a 2–0 friendly win over Zimbabwe on 6 June 2025. In March 2026, he was called up by Gérald Baticle to the France under-21 national team for the matches against Luxembourg and Iceland.

As of match played 16 August 2026