Karim Benzema Age, Biography, Net Worth, Football Career, Facts
Karim Benzema is a French footballer, who plays for the France national football team and the Spanish professional football club Real Madrid as a striker. He joined Lyon at the age of 9 and played in their debut match in 2004-05.
During his debut season, he contributed 30 goals for Lyon, helping them lift their seventh league title. He was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year and was included in the Team of the Year by the National Union of Professional Soccer Players. He has won French Player of the Year three times. The footballer has played major tournaments such as the 2014 FIFA World Cup and UEFA European club football in 2008 and 2012.
Karim Benzema is known for his creative and offensive style of play which has led him to be regarded as one of the best players in the world. Here, we take a closer look at Karim Benzema Biography, Net Worth, Age, Facts, and Football career so far.
Who Is Karim Benzema?
Karim Benzema was born on December 19, 1987, in Lyon, France, the son of Hafid Benzema and Wahida Djebbara. The star striker spent his childhood in a small house in Bron with his eight brothers. He started playing soccer at the age of 8 for a local Bron Terraillion club with his brothers Saber and Grassy. During an Under-10 match, Lyon club officials were present for scouting and were highly impressed by Benzemna’s performance, signing him in 1996 for the club’s youth setup.
Karim Benzema Biography
| Full Name | Karim Mostafa Benzema |
| Nickname | COCO |
| Profession | Footballer |
| Date of Birth & Age | 19 December 1987 (age 35) |
| Birth Place | Lyon, France |
| Religion | Islam |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Hometown & Country | Lyon, France |
| Height | 1.85 m |
Karim Benzema Age
His age in 2022 is 35 years.
Karim Benzema Salary and Net Worth
According to Real Madrid’s player’s salaries report, Benzema earns around 10M €. Karim Benzema has a net worth of $40 million dollars.
IS Karim Benzema Muslim
Benzema is a practicing Muslim and he observes fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
Karim Benzema Football Career
Here, we take a closer look at Karim Benzema’s Football career so far.
Benzema began his football career at his hometown club Bron Terraillon SC at the age of eight. While at the club, his friends nicknamed him Coco, and after scoring two goals in an under-10 match against Lyon’s youth academy, he began to attract the attention of the biggest club in town. According to Serge Santa Cruz, who was president of Bron Terraillon in the 1990s, Lyon officials had visited him directly in an attempt to sign the youngster; however, Santa Cruz refused. After speaking with Benzema’s father, the club allowed the player to undergo a trial with Lyon. Following the trial, Benzema officially joined Lyon and was inserted into the club’s academy.
Lyon
After his arrival at Lyon, he became part of the club’s youth academy, where he soon climbed through the youth ranks. The French national league ‘Championnat National des 16 ans’, for footballers under the age of 16, saw him score 38 goals.
He was promoted to the reserve team of the club that participated in the ‘Championnat de France Amateur’ football league competition, prior to the 2004-2005 ‘Ligue 1’ season.
He made his professional debut on January 15, 2005, against ‘FC Metz’. The ‘Lyon’ won the match 2-0. Thereafter, Benzema signed a three-year professional contract. The club won its fourth consecutive league title that season.
He made his ‘UEFA Champions League’ debut on December 6, 2005, in ‘Lyon’s’ final group stage match against Norwegian club ‘Rosenborg’, which the club won 2-1. The match marked the first professional goal scored by Benzema.
He scored his first professional double in January 2006, when ‘Lyon’ beat ‘Grenoble’ 4-0 in the ‘Coupe de France’. On March 4 of the same year, he scored the first goal of his career in the professional league, playing against ‘Ajaccio’.
He played as a main striker during the 2007-2008 season. He scored 20 goals and topped the league, a feat that earned him the ‘Trophée du Meilleur Buteur’ award. Karim Benzema scored a goal in the ‘Coupe de la Ligue’, scored four goals in the ‘Champions League and made six goals in six games in the ‘Coupe de France’, helping ‘Lyon’ win the first double in history. of the club, He also delivered a hat-trick that season, on September 15, against ‘Metz’.
He had a contract extension with ‘Lyon’ on March 13, 2008, which meant that he would stay until 2013, with an option for an extension for another year. That season, the ‘UNFP’ named him ‘Ligue 1 Player of the Year’ and enlisted him in the ‘Team of the Year’. He also received the ‘Premio Bravo’ from the Italian magazine ‘Guerin Sportivo’ in 2008.
Real Madrid
On July 9, 2009, he signed a six-year contract with the Spanish professional soccer club ‘Real Madrid’. His debut for the club was in his first pre-season friendly match with Irish club ‘Shamrock Rovers’ in Dublin on 20 July that year. He scored his first goal for the club in the same game and led them to a 1–0 win.
An annual friendly tournament organized for the ‘Santiago Bernabeu Trophy’ saw him score two goals against Norwegian club ‘Rosenborg’ on August 24, 2009, as ‘Real Madrid’ cruised to a 4-0 win.
On August 29, 2009, Karim Benzema debuted in the league playing against ‘Deportivo La Coruña’. He scored his first league goal with ‘Real Madrid’ in September 2009, and the club beat ‘Xerez’ 5-0. He debuted in the ‘Champions League of ‘Real Madrid’ on September 30 of that year.
His first hat-trick with the club was during the 2010-2011 season, in a match against ‘Auxerre’. ‘Real Madrid’ won a 4-0 victory in the same match. The first of his three goals marked Real Madrid’s 300th goal in the Champions League era. He scored his second hat-trick for the club in a Copa del Rey match against Levante, which Real Madrid won 8-0.
He was part of the ‘Real Madrid’ squad that beat ‘Barcelona’ 1-0 in the final of the ‘Copa del Rey’, on April 20, 2011, at the ‘Estadio de Mestalla’. On December 10, 2011, he scored the fastest goal in a ‘Clásico’ in just 21 seconds of the game. On December 13 of that year, he was named “French Player of the Year” by “France Football”, an honor that he won again in 2012 and 2014.
He won his second ‘Copa del Rey’ with ‘Real Madrid’, when the club scored a 2-1 victory over ‘Barcelona’ on April 16, 2014, at ‘Mestalla’ in Valencia.
The club confirmed a new five-year contract between Benzema and ‘Real Madrid’ on August 6, 2014. The agreement established that Benzema would be with the club until 2019. In October of that year, he was named ‘La Liga Player Del month.’
Year 2017
Karim Benzema signed a contract extension with the club on September 20, 2017, which meant that he would stay until 2021.
Benzema’s time at ‘Real Madrid’ has been full of events so far. He was part of the squad of the club that was proclaimed champion of ‘La Liga’ during the 2011-2012 and 2016-2017 seasons. He won the ‘Supercopa de España’ with the club, in 2012 and 2017. Benzema was also part of the club’s squad that won the ‘UEFA Champions League’ in the 2013-2014, 2015-2016, and 2016-2017 seasons. . Benzema won both the ‘UEFA Super Cup’ and the ‘FIFA Club World Cup’ with the club, in 2014, 2016 and 2017.
International career
His international career saw him represent France from a very young age, starting from the ‘Under-17’ level. He was part of the ‘Under-17’ team that won the 2004 ‘UEFA European Under-17 Championship’, defeating Spain 2-1, on May 15, 2004.
He made his senior international debut on March 28, 2007, and represented France at the ‘UEFA European Football Championship’ in 2008 and 2012. Benzema was also part of the French team that participated in the 2014 ‘FIFA World Cup’.It has harvested more than 80 caps so far. However, he was not included in the squads for the 2010 ‘FIFA World Cup’ and the 2016 ‘UEFA European Championship’.
Return to the squad for Euro 2020, 2021 Nations League Finals and 2022 World Cup Qualification
On 18 May 2021, following media speculation, Benzema was officially included in France’s 26-man squad for UEFA Euro 2020, his first call-up to the national team in over five years. He made his first appearance since his return on June 2, in a 3-0 home win over Wales, in a warm-up friendly match before the tournament final, during which he missed a penalty, but then also participated in the final goal. . Scored by Antoine Griezmann. On June 23, 2021, he scored a brace in a 2–2 draw against Portugal, marking his first goal in the European Championship. He subsequently scored another brace in France’s round of 16 matches against Switzerland, where France was eliminated from the tournament on penalties after a 3-3 draw. With four goals in as many games, Benzema won the Euro 2020 bronze boot.
Style of play
A creative, skillful, fast, agile, and prolific striker, good in the air and capable of playing behind the back of the last defender, Karim Benzema has been described as a “hugely talented striker” who is “strong and powerful” and “a powerful finisher since inside the box” with either foot, as well as with his head, despite being right-footed by nature.
Honours
Lyon
Ligue 1: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08
Coupe de France: 2007–08
Trophée des Champions: 2006, 2007
Real Madrid
La Liga: 2011–12, 2016–17, 2019–20
Copa del Rey: 2010–11, 2013–14
Supercopa de España: 2012, 2017, 2021–22
UEFA Champions League: 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18
UEFA Super Cup: 2014, 2016, 2017
FIFA Club World Cup: 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018
France U17
UEFA European Under-17 Championship: 2004
France
UEFA Nations League: 2020–21
Individual Awards
- Received the “Bravo Award” from the Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo
- Karim Benzema scored a total of 32 goals helping Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey in 2011 and the 2011-12 edition of LaLiga.
- Named as “French Player of the Year” for the year 2011, 2012 and 2014
- He also played for the U17 team that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Championship.
- Benzema scored his 100th goal in Madrid’s 5-0 win against Real Betis on 18 January 2014.
- On 12 August 2014, Benzema played the full 90 minutes in Real Madrid’s 2–0 victory to win the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla in Cardiff.
- Benzema has been voted the LaLiga Player of the Month for October 2014.
- Benzema scored a hat-trick in a thrilling 8-0 victory against Malmö FF on December 8, 2015.
- He was a regular starter when his team, Real Madrid, won the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League.
- Benzema was a regular starter and scored the last goal of the season as Madrid won the 2016-17 La Liga and the 2016-17 UEFA Champions League.
- Benzema scored the opening goal of the match in the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final as Madrid won their third successive title and 13th overall on 26 May 2018.
- On 7 November 2018, Benzema scored impressively in a 5-0 win against Viktoria Plzeň in the UEFA Champions League group stage and scored his 200th goal for the club, becoming the seventh Real player Madrid to achieve the feat.
- Awarded Trophées UNFP to the best French player playing abroad in 2019
Interesting Facts about Karim Benzema
- He was romantically associated with Manon Marsault from 2010 to 2013.
- He has two children: a daughter Mélia, born on February 3, 2014, and a son Ibrahim, born on May 5, 2017.
- Karim Benzema is a practicing Muslim who fasts during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
- He fell on the wrong side of the law twice. He was charged with “solicitation of a minor prostitute”, an incident that was first reported by the French television channel ‘M6’ on April 18, 2010. The case is under trial. In another incident, French police arrested him on November 4, 2015 for blackmailing French international soccer player Mathieu Valbuena.
Summary
The article discusses Karim Benzema Biography, performance for Football, including his Football Career, Individual Awards, Interesting Facts, style of play, Honours, Net Worth, Age, and FAQ.
