Karim Benzema says Vinicius Junior will win the Ballon d’Or in the near future.
The Brazilian forward narrowly missed out on the prestigious award last year, with the trophy being handed to Manchester City midfielder Rodri instead.
The move caused serious backlash from Vinicius and Real Madrid, who opted to skip the event entirely.
Benzema, who left Real Madrid for Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia in 2023, attended Madrid’s recent Spanish Supercopa win against Mallorca in Jeddah and met up with the squad previously during the day.
Speaking to Marca, Benzema said: “I told Vinicius] to not take any notice. He shouldn’t lower his intensity, because he’s the best in the world, and one day he will win the Ballon d’Or.”
While he may have missed out on the main prize, Vinicius was awarded FIFA’s Men’s ‘The Best’ award last month.
🤩 A VERY special visit in Jeddah!
👉 @Benzema#SuperSupercopa pic.twitter.com/z5JfwNZHE7— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 9, 2025
Life in Saudi
Benzema has been enjoying life out in Saudi Arabia since leaving Madrid.
The French striker has been thriving with Al Ittihad, who sit top of the table ahead of Al-Hilal. The 37-year-old has netted 10 goals in 10 appearances along the way.
Responding to rumours that he may retire at the end of the season, Benzema said: “I don’t know whose words they are. Nonsense. I don’t have a limit, to be able to say that in two, three or four years, I’ll be leaving football.
“I feel good. My body is fine. I train well and we’ll see how I feel each year.”
“I want to keep winning.
“In my head, I want to win a trophy with Al Ittihad. It’s difficult because the level has improved a lot and the teams are strong, better than before. We’ll keep working, because we haven’t won anything yet.”
While he appears happy in Saudi, when asked about a potential return to Madrid in the future, Benzema left the door open, adding: “Why not? I’m in Jeddah now, and I’m happy. The time will come to see how my life is, and for sure I’ll be close to Madrid.”