French football is by far the most multinational in the world. Every second French football player has African roots. And one of the most striking Frenchmen performing in this sport is now Karim Benzema. This is an incredible player, who at the same time attracts attention not only on the field, but also outside it - and, unfortunately, not in the best way.
The early years of Karim
Karim Benzema was born in 1987 in Lyon, in a poor neighborhood, in a far from wealthy family of immigrants from Algeria. He became one of nine children, so, naturally, there was no question of special treatment. Therefore, Karim grew up like an ordinary boy, he loved to play football and at age 8 he went to study at the academy of a local small club. It cannot be said that the young Frenchman of Algerian origin was strong in the sciences - unfortunately, this was his weak point, so Karim focused on football. And, as it turned out in the end, did not lose.
New talent in France
In 1997, Karim Benzema was spotted by one of the largest clubs in France, Lyon, and was admitted to the junior academy, where he demonstrated incredible ball handling skills for his age. But in those days the club had its own stars, so until the age of 17 the young talent played exclusively for the youth squads of Lyon, and even when they signed a professional contract with him at such an early age, Benzema continued to sit on the bench, playing mainly in the reserve . But this could not continue for a long time - at 19, Karim proved to everyone that he can and should be reckoned with. He began to gradually gain a place in the main team of one of the strongest teams in France and eventually became its irreplaceable part. In 2008, Karim became the top scorer of the French championship - to say nothing of the fact that together with his club during his stay there he raised four champion trophies, as well as one French Cup.
A dream comes true
But whatever one may say, the French championship is the least prestigious of the top 5 European championships, so in 2009 the fate of the player changed dramatically. His talent was seen in Real Madrid, and the royal club never skimp on transfer amounts for the players he needs. Therefore, Lyon was unable to refuse the amount of 35 million euros (only Chelsea paid more to Lyon in 2005: then Michael Essien transferred to Chelsea for 38 million euros). So Karim Benzema was in a new country - Spain, while he became a player in one of the strongest clubs in the world. How could anyone think that a native of a poor family could be such a football genius? But Karim did not think to relax - he immediately began to prove that such a lot of money was paid for him not in vain. Of course, he spent the first season not in the best way, since he had to adapt to a new country, a new team, a new environment and, of course, to new, much higher standards of the game. However, Karim soon began to demonstrate his usual football, which to this day pleases the fans of Real Madrid. Together with the royal club, Benzema has already managed to win the championship of Spain, as well as the Spanish Cup and Super Cup.
Benzema in the French team
As mentioned earlier, Benzema is not the only non-purebred Frenchman in the team - there are plenty of such players there, so the attacker feels great. He made his debut for the national team in 2007 at the age of 19, and the next year he went to the European Championship. Benzema also took part in the 2012 European Championship , but none of these tournaments in France could be won. To date, he has played 35 official matches for the national team, scoring 9 goals in them. But now Karim Benzema, whose biography already has certain marks of success, is still very young by football standards - he is only 26 years old, so there are still many achievements ahead of him.
Muslim blood
Given the fact that Benzema was born in France to parents from Algeria, he professes Islam, and does this not just for the sake of sight - Karim is actually an ardent supporter of this religion and is proud of his religion. At some point, he even wanted Karim Benzema to appear on his T-shirt, and not just Benzema, so that everyone could see his Muslim name, but as a result it turned out to be irrational, so the player’s name remained exclusively on the T-shirt. Thus, he is one of the most famous adherents of this religion in the world. Karim Benzema is a Muslim, and that’s it. That's what the player thinks, but does he adhere to this concept in his personal life?
Young yes early
If you would like to know who Karim Benzema’s girlfriend is, you would be greatly disappointed - unlike most football players who either haven’t found their love or have long lived together or even got married, Karim is in no hurry. Moreover, he changes girls like gloves. In the information space you can find various stories, the main character of which is Karim Benzema, photos of himself and his next passion fly around the network incredibly quickly. Naturally, this does not give him popularity among fans, since in many cases the player’s adventures turn into full-fledged scandals, two of which have rattled the whole world not so long ago.
The connection of Benzema with a minor prostitute
In 2010, a real scandal erupted in France that spread across Europe - two players from the French national team, Karim Benzema and Frank Ribery, were charged with having sex with a minor prostitute. Football lovers probably know that her name was Zahia Dehar, she was detained during one of the raids by the local police, after which she said that she had contact with famous personalities, pointing to Ribery and Benzema. Frank immediately admitted that a similar incident took place, and Karim for a long time unlocked. More than one court session took place, many thought that the two famous football players of the French national team would be sent to jail, but the case unexpectedly ended in early 2014. In January, a final court session was scheduled, at which neither Zakhia, nor both the players appeared. As a result, both of them were found not guilty, because they did not know that at the time of contact with Zakhia she was not 18. However, there was an unpleasant aftertaste, because both players were Muslims, and Frank converted to Islam for the sake of his wife Wahiba, and Karim was brought up from childhood Muslim customs.
Karim's connection with shemale
Before the scandal with Zakhia settled down, Benzema managed to become the center of another, again sexual, scandal. This time, no charges were brought against the football player, but news spread throughout the world in 2013 that Benzema had repeatedly used the services of a transgender prostitute Victoria, who used to be Johnny. Benzema was well aware that he was in touch with a transsexual and even stated that this gave him even more impressions. But the biggest shock was that for the first night with Victoria Karim paid 2 thousand euros, and for the second - 6 thousand. And this despite the fact that in the press for a long time there was information that Karim could not find one and a half thousand euros in any way for the operation to the sick grandmother, who raised him from early childhood. Even earlier, information appeared that his aunt had asked Karim for help, but the footballer refused her. As a result, it turns out that Benzema is a real football genius on the field, but when it comes to his personal life, then fans should not think about it - Karim is far from being a saint.