Al-Ittihad, the champion of the Saudi Professional Football League, announced today, Tuesday, the signing of Frenchman Karim Benzema from Real Madrid until the summer of 2026.
The federation posted a video of Benzema on Twitter showing off his career and skills and showed the Frenchman signing the contract and lifting the club's shirt that read 2026.
The Saudi champion wrote on his official Twitter account: "Al-Benz is federal. Luck tonight is generous." "Welcome to the union. A new tiger will roar."
Benzema said in the video: "I'm excited to see you in Jeddah."
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Al Ittihad (@ittihadclub.sa)
Ballon d'Or winner Benzema bid farewell to Real Madrid earlier in the day in a small, private ceremony without fans and media and after a 14-year career.
The 35-year-old French striker left his club by mutual consent in order to move to Saudi club Al Ittihad in a deal estimated by the media to be worth more than 100 million euros per season.
Benzema joined the club in 2009 from Olympique Lyonnais and became the club's attacking focus and main goalscorer after Cristiano Ronaldo moved to Juventus in 2018.
Benzema scored 354 goals for Real and is the club's second all-time top scorer behind Ronaldo.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid)
Benzema had his best season in 2021-2022 and scored 44 goals in all competitions to lead his club to consolidate their lead and win the European title for the 14th time in their history as well as the Spanish league title.
Benzema won the Ballon d'Or and became the first French player to win the award since Zinedine Zidane did so in 1998, and the fifth French player to achieve the feat overall.
Benzema followed in the footsteps of his former Real Madrid team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo, who moved to Saudi Arabia last December when he joined Al Nasr on a contract that runs until 2025 with an annual salary of 200 million euros.
Several reports have also linked Argentine Lionel Messi to the possibility of a move to Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal after announcing his departure from Paris Saint-Germain.