Yannis Tafer (French pronunciation: , born 11 February 1991) is an Algerian footballer who plays for Tunisian club Étoile Sportive du Sahel. He is a France youth international having represented the country under-17, under-18, and under-19 level. Tafer was the top scorer at the 2008 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship leading the tournament with four goals and played on the under-19 team that won the 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship.
Tafer was born in the city of Grenoble in the Rhône-Alpes region to an Algerian father, who emigrated to France from Constantine, and a Portuguese mother. He began his football career with a local club in the region, FC Échirolles. After spending seven years with his childhood club, Tafer signed an aspirant (youth) contract with the then three-time champions Olympique Lyonnais.
Following the 2007–08 season, Tafer signed his first professional contract with Lyon agreeing to a three-year contract until 2011. For the 2008–09 season, he was placed on Lyon's first-team squad and was assigned the 34 shirt, though he was reassigned to the number 29. Tafer was a key participant in the club's preseason tour playing in four of the five matches contested. He scored three goals in the preseason netting one each against second division club Nîmes, Romanian club Rapid Bucureşti, and fellow Ligue 1 club Nancy.