At the height of his glory moments, the French star did not forget to direct the words of Irfan to his first inspiration in the world of football, and took advantage of the opportunity to win the Golden Ball for the best player in the world to celebrate the Brazilian phenomenon Ronaldo.

Benzema, winner of the Spanish League and the Champions League with Real Madrid, and the European Nations League with France, received his award from his compatriot and former coach Zinedine Zidane, who won it in 1998.

"Seeing (this award) is a great honor for me," Benzema said after receiving the Ballon d'Or in Paris on Monday. "I remember when I was a kid and all the efforts I made to get here, I never gave up. It's a dream come true, I grew up and that was my goal." .

KARIM BENZEMA IS THE 2022 BALLON D'OR!@Benzema@realmadrid#ballondor pic.twitter.com/fDHTdtHtai

— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) October 17, 2022

He added, "I lived through difficult times before reaching this moment, those times when I was not in the national team, but I struggled thanks to the support of my family and my coach at Real Madrid to reach my goal."

He continued, "Zidane (his former coach in Madrid) has always asked me to keep the joy in my football, and confirm that I can win this award. I am very proud of what I have achieved in my career."

Benzema singled out the Brazilian star Ronaldo Nazario with a special message, and said to the player nicknamed the phenomenon, who was sitting in the front row, "You know that you are my first inspiration, for me there is no striker like him, what he did on the football fields is impossible to repeat, he is the only one who if we were In the same team, I will sit on the bench without saying a lip."

Benzema, 34, became the fifth French player to win the Ballon d'Or after Raymond (1958), Michel Platini (1983, 1984 and 1985), Jean-Pierre Papin (1991) and Zidane (1998).

The player, who started his career with Lyon, scored 44 goals in 46 games in all competitions last season with the Royal Club, including 15 in the Champions League.

Benzema included the Golden Ball award for the best player in Europe presented by the European Union for the game (UEFA) last August, and is going through the best period of his career nearly a month before the World Cup.