Kanté, 35, lifted football's biggest prize when France beat Croatia in the 2018 final, and was part of the squad that narrowly missed out on defending the trophy four years later, losing on penalties to Argentina. He has since gone on to earn a recall to Didier Deschamps's squad for this summer's World Cup.
But according to Vardy, Kanté very nearly never played for Les Bleus at all.
Speaking on his podcast, Jamie Vardy's Having a Party, the former Leicester and England striker recalled how Kanté initially planned to honour his Malian heritage rather than represent the country of his birth.
"The mad thing as well, originally, he didn't even want to play for France. He wanted to represent Mali for his dad, but France called him before Mali did. We were all at training going, 'What are you actually thinking about? They're going to win, go and play for France,'" Vardy said.
Now a free agent after leaving Serie B side Cremonese, Vardy also shared a lighter story from Kanté's time at Chelsea, recalling how the midfielder's humility became something of a running joke among team-mates.
"At Chelsea, he even gave his Mini Cooper to his parents back in the village and bought himself another after his team-mates joked about the old one," Vardy said.
Vardy and Kanté formed a close bond as they spearheaded Leicester's remarkable Premier League title win a decade ago, making 34 appearances together during the Foxes' historic campaign. Kanté left Leicester for Chelsea in a deal worth £30 million shortly afterwards, going on to win a second Premier League title along with the Champions League, Europa League, Club World Cup, Uefa Super Cup and FA Cup at Stamford Bridge.
He later moved to Saudi Arabia with Al-Ittihad before completing a dramatic transfer to Fenerbahçe in February, where he signed a two-and-a-half-year contract after Al-Ittihad agreed to terminate his deal following a protracted saga over the move.
Kanté had previously turned down interest from Mali once before, having rejected an approach from the country's federation while playing for Caen, when he said he did not yet feel ready for international football. He went uncapped at senior level until his move to Leicester alerted France's coaching staff to his rise, with his eventual France debut coming in 2016, the same year he won the Premier League title with Vardy.
Two years later he was one of the standout performers as France won the World Cup in Russia, renowned for his tireless work rate and positional intelligence in midfield, before adding a Nations League title with France in 2021 and reaching the final of Euro 2016.