If the professional football produces some « great men », the admired individualities are not always the ones that we think of. This article describes the outstanding trajectory of a supporter of the Olympique de Marseilles. From anonymous spectator to leader recognized at the stadium, he became a famous character of the city and then the object of celebration after his death. Studying the discourses related to the man, in relation with the social configurations within which he lived, this paper emphasizes the possible reversibility of the reception of so-called exceptional figures.