Benzema's Ballon d'Or 'of the people'

Veteran striker grateful to fans after claiming coveted award for first time

Karim Benzema said he had become more ambitious with age as the Real Madrid and France striker won the Ballon d'Or on Monday, and dedicated his trophy to "the people".

Benzema, who turns 35 in December, the day after the World Cup final, is five months older than Lionel Messi was when the Argentine won the most prestigious individual award in soccer for the seventh time last year.

Indeed, he is the oldest winner since England's Stanley Matthews won the very first Ballon d'Or in 1956.

Benzema, who is the first French winner of the most prestigious individual award in soccer since Zinedine Zidane in 1998, scored 44 goals in 46 games for his club last season as Madrid won the Champions League and La Liga.

Fifteen of his goals came in the Champions League, including hat-tricks in knockout wins against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea and three more across both legs of a stunning semifinal defeat of Manchester City.

The 34-year-old, who also won the UEFA Nations League with France, succeeds Messi with the Argentine not nominated this year.

"The Ballon d'Or might be individual but it's still a collective award. This is the Ballon d'Or of the people," Benzema declared.

"Winning this trophy was always in the back of my mind but what has changed since I turned 30 is ambition," Benzema said after collecting the prize in a star-studded ceremony at the Chatelet Theatre in Paris.

Benzema was just 21 when he joined Madrid from Lyon in 2009.He has come into his own in the Spanish capital since Cristiano Ronaldo's departure in 2018, when Benzema was 30.

"Ambition really entered my head after that," Benzema said of the late flourish in his career.

"Ambition means working harder and being a leader for my team and I am lucky to play for Madrid, the best club in the world.

"When I was 21, or 22, I didn't have the same ambition I have today."

Benzema pushed Sadio Mane into second place, although the Bayern Munich and Senegal star did have his off-field work recognized as he was given a new award named after former Brazil star Socrates.

Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City was third, with Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski coming fourth.

Spain's Alexia Putellas retained the women's prize.

'Difficult moments'

Winning the Nations League completed a remarkable revival for a player who was frozen out of the national team for five and a half years because of his role in a blackmail scandal over a sex tape involving teammate Mathieu Valbuena.

He was later handed a one-year suspended prison sentence and fined 75,000 euros ($73,848).

He returned to the national team for last year's European Championship and will now go to the World Cup in Qatar with France next month.

"I have been through difficult moments, where I wasn't playing for the national team and so was alone at Valdebebas (Madrid's training ground) because everyone else was away playing for their countries," said Benzema.

"I am very happy and very proud of the work I have put in."

In his acceptance speech, Benzema called his prize "the Ballon d'Or of the people", a statement he later said was not intended to be political but "just a nod to where I come from".

Among those to congratulate Benzema publicly was French President Emmanuel Macron, who did so on Twitter.

"Thanks to the president. That's nice," Benzema said.

"When I play football I don't go out thinking I need to please anybody. I just try to give emotion to people. I know today people are proud of me and that is why I said it is their Ballon d'Or."

The former Lyon striker is also the fifth Frenchman to win the prize, with Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini and Jean-Pierre Papin all getting their hands on the trophy before Zidane.

The award was previously based on a player's performances over the course of the calendar year.

But the format has changed, with the prize now based on a player's record over the last season.

He is now targeting the World Cup with France in November and December, having not been involved when Les Bleus won the trophy in Russia in 2018.

"I am still ambitious. I would like to go to the World Cup with France," he said.

"There are things that are still left to be done. I hope to be in the squad for Qatar, to go to the World Cup and do everything to win it."

Putellas eyes return

The new judging format looks to have helped Putellas win the women's award.

She sustained a serious knee injury in July that saw her miss the European Championship with Spain. Instead, Putellas' performances with Barcelona were recognized after she top-scored in the Women's Champions League to help Barca reach the final, which it lost to Lyon.

"It makes me even more annoyed to be injured, but I am very happy to be here," Putellas said.

"To retain the trophy is much harder. When I injured my knee I thought my chances of winning it had gone, but in the end the jury based its decision on the whole of last season, of which I only missed one month."

The 28-year-old edged out Beth Mead, who scored six goals for the England side that won the Euros on home soil.

Sam Kerr of Chelsea and Australia came third.

It is just the fourth time a Women's Ballon d'Or has been awarded, with Norway's Ada Hegerberg winning the inaugural prize in 2018 and American Megan Rapinoe triumphing in 2019.

There was no ceremony in 2020 due to the pandemic, before Putellas won her first a year ago.

Her injury means she is unlikely to make it a hat-trick next year, although she hopes to play again this season.

"The knee is doing well. I just need to focus on recovering and if everything goes as I hope — and as the doctors and my club hope — I will be back playing this season," she said.

Barcelona and Spain midfielder Gavi won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21, while Lewandowski received the award for last season's top scorer, renamed the Gerd Mueller Trophy.

Real Madrid's Thibaut Courtois won the prize for best goalkeeper of the year.

AFP