Phootprint was a feasibility study conducted in 2014 by the European Space Agency (ESA) for a sample-return mission to the Mars moon Phobos. The study proposed a launch date of 2024 for this mission. The ESA ultimately did not launch Phootprint as its own mission but is working with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) on the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) probe, a similar mission to Phobos set to launch in 2026.

The Phootprint mission was conceived as a candidate for the Mars Robotic Exploration Preparation Programme 2 (MREP-2) at ESA. In 2014, ESA funded Footprint's pre-phase A feasibility study and an 8-month industrial system study.

The mission was proposed to be launched on an Ariane 5 in 2024 with early 2026 as backup date. The spacecraft would have orbited Mars for the characterisation phase, before maneuvering into a quasi-satellite orbit to facilitate the landing on Phobos. Because of the low gravity, the lander would have anchored itself to the surface during sample collection and when launching the Earth Re-entry Capsule (ERC).

The mission would have lasted about 3.5 years, including the cruise time to Phobos, orbit mapping, 7 days on the surface, and finally, the sample return cruise time. The spacecraft would be powered by solar arrays.

In August 2015, the ESA-Roscosmos working group, after cooperation on ExoMars, completed a joint study for a possible future Phobos Sample Return mission, and preliminary discussions were held.

Ultimately, Phootprint was not pursued as an ESA-headed mission under that name. However, interest in a sample-return mission to Phobos remained to further the objectives of the ESA's Cosmic Vision campaign, and the ESA became a contributor to the Japanese MMX mission.

The top-level science goal was to understand the formation of the Martian moons Phobos and Deimos and put constraints on the evolution of the Solar System (co-formation, capture, impact ejecta).

The mission objectives were: