|| style="text-align:center;vertical-align:middle;" | Hatem Ben Arfa (Arabic: حاتم بن عرفة, French pronunciation: [atɛm bɛnaʁfa]; born 7 March 1987) is a Tunisian-French former professional footballer who played as a winger and attacking midfielder.

In the summer of 2008, Ben Arfa signed with rivals Marseille for €11 million in a move that required the intervention of the Ligue de Football Professionnel.

He signed for Nice in January 2015 but was unable to make his debut until August, having already represented Newcastle United Reserves and Hull City the previous season.

After failing to make a competitive appearance in the 2017–18 season, Ben Arfa signed for Rennes, where he won the 2019 Coupe de France over Paris Saint-Germain.

In August 2004, after spending two years in the youth divisions of the Lyon academy, he signed his first professional contract, agreeing to a three-year deal despite late interest from English club Chelsea and Dutch outfit Ajax.

[20] He made his UEFA Champions League debut in a group stage match against Manchester United coming on as a substitute for Sidney Govou.

[22] He made his first Champions League start in a 2–1 victory over Norwegian club Rosenborg, providing the assist on the game-winning goal scored by Fred in the last minutes of the match.

[24] After the departure of wingers Florent Malouda and Sylvain Wiltord, new manager Alain Perrin preferred the more modern 4–3–3 formation, and moved Ben Arfa to left wing for the 2007–08 season.

[25] Ben Arfa quickly adapted to the position and scored his first goal in a 5–1 demolition of Metz on 15 September, though his performance was overshadowed by a Benzema hat trick.

[35] However, Ben Arfa confirmed to the local La Provence newspaper on 29 June that he had signed for the southern coast club and would not return to Lyon for pre-season training the following day.

On 16 July, Ben Arfa was involved in another training session bust-up, this time with striker and France international player Djibril Cissé.

However, his reputation for controversy continued to haunt him when he was involved in another dispute, this time with the Cameroon international player Modeste M'bami during a warm up session ahead of the club's UEFA Champions League match against Liverpool.

[67][68] On 9 August, a season-long loan with an option to make the move permanent was being negotiated between the two clubs; however, a loan-fee for the deal could not be reached with Newcastle offering £650,000; £350,000 short of what Marseille wanted.

[69] On 12 August, Marseille president Jean-Claude Dassier announced that Ben Arfa would not be moving to Newcastle and even went as far as to say that an offer from the club had not even existed.

[70] Similar to his actions in leaving Lyon, Ben Arfa responded to the statement by telling the French sports newspaper L'Équipe that he would not be returning to La Commanderie, Marseille's training facility, and would not play with the team for the remainder of the season.

[78][79] On 27 August, Dassier confirmed that the club had reached an agreement on a loan fee with Newcastle for the transfer of Ben Arfa with personal terms being the only stumbling block in the deal.

[84] On 3 October, Ben Arfa suffered a broken tibia and fibula in his left leg while playing in a league match against Manchester City.

After continuing his rehabilitation during the summer, ahead of the 2011–12 season, Ben Arfa began participating in friendly matches with the senior team.

[101][102] Despite having a disrupted pre-season due to his participation in Euro 2012, Ben Arfa enjoyed a good start to the new Premier League season.

[108] On 12 May, Ben Arfa scored the equaliser in a 2–1 away win at Loftus Road from the penalty spot as Newcastle confirmed their Premier League status for the next season.

[116] On 5 January 2015, Ben Arfa signed a deal with Ligue 1 side Nice, stating that "Even if Real Madrid had called at that moment, my mind was made up.

[130] On 27 April 2019, Ben Arfa won the Coupe de France as Rennes defeated his former club Paris Saint-Germain in the final on penalties.

However, he endured a difficult second half of the season, which was marred by injuries and problems in the locker room with several teammates, notably with captain Laurent Koscielny.

[141] In early April, Ben Arfa was suspended from the Lille squad after a heated altercation with manager Jocelyn Gourvennec following a 0–0 draw to Bordeaux.

[150] At the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, Ben Arfa, alongside teammates Samir Nasri, Benzema, and Jérémy Menez contributed to the team winning the competition.

[157] Ben Arfa was called up to the senior team for the first time on 10 October 2007 by Raymond Domenech to replace the injured Louis Saha and played in the Euro 2008 qualifying matches against the Faroe Islands and Lithuania.

[159] Ben Arfa made his debut on 13 October when he came on for Franck Ribéry in the 64th minute and scored the last goal in France's 6–0 victory over the Faroe Islands.

[39] On 25 February 2010, after a long period without a call-up, Ben Arfa returned to the team, alongside teammates Steve Mandanda and Benoît Cheyrou, after being called up for France's friendly match with Spain on 3 March.

[163] On 29 May 2012 Ben Arfa was included in France's 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2012, making his first start in the final game of Group D, losing 2–0 to Sweden.

His father, Kamel Ben Arfa, a former Tunisian international footballer, arrived in France in 1973, settling in Saint-Michel, Aisne to work in a foundry.