Karim Benzema is a French striker who plays for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia. He won 25 trophies with Real Madrid. That includes four La Liga titles, three Copa del Reys, and five Champions League titles. He’s scored over 500 career goals for club and country. He’s Real Madrid’s second-highest goalscorer behind Cristiano Ronaldo and third-highest assist provider.
In March 2020, during an Instagram livestream, Benzema made controversial remarks about French player Olivier Giroud, who had replaced him in the France national team. He called Giroud “karting” while referring to himself as “Formula 1.”
In March 2023, France coach Didier Deschamps told a French newspaper that he had told Benzema after his injury before the 2022 World Cup that there was “no emergency” and that he could organize his return with the team manager. Deschamps claimed Benzema made the decision to leave the team himself, saying “when I woke up, I learned that he had left.” Benzema responded on Instagram by reposting Deschamps’ statement with the caption “but what audacity.” He also posted a story calling him a liar.
Benzema now plays for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia, and his international career with France appears to be over. Despite his achievements on the pitch, his relationship with the national team has been complicated for years.
Top 5 Most Famous Karim Benzema Conspiracy Theories
1. The “Sex Tape Scandal” That Ruined His France Career
This is the biggest, ugliest scandal of Benzema’s life. It all started back in 2015.
Some criminals got hold of a private sex video of Benzema’s France teammate, Mathieu Valbuena. They tried to blackmail Valbuena for money. Benzema was accused of being the middleman, basically, telling Valbuena, “Hey, you should just pay these guys.”
Benzema has always said he’s innocent. He claims he was tricked by a childhood friend who set him up.
He faced serious charges that could have sent him to prison for up to five years. But the biggest punishment was getting kicked off the French national team for years. He even had to miss the Euro 2016 tournament that was held in his own home country.
Even as recently as 2025, this old case came back for another trial. It just won’t go away.
2. The “Terror Group Ties” Accusation
During the 2023 war between Israel and Hamas, Benzema posted a message on social media saying he felt bad for the people getting bombed in Gaza. That simple post blew up in a huge way.
France’s Interior Minister (a big government official) went on TV and said Benzema has “known links” to the Muslim Brotherhood, a group that France calls a terrorist organization.
Benzema fired back hard. He said it was “completely false” and sued the minister for defamation. A lot of people felt the government was just using a footballer’s sad post to make a political point.
3. The 2022 World Cup “Teammates Blocked Him” Theory
Benzema was supposed to play in the 2022 World Cup. But he got hurt in training and left the team to go back to Madrid. But here’s where it gets fishy.
Benzema actually recovered from his injury pretty quickly. But France never called him back to the squad. Then reports came out saying that a group of senior players, led by captain Hugo Lloris, had secretly agreed to keep him out. They supposedly didn’t want him back.
The denial: Lloris said that was “completely untrue” and “absurd.” But the rumors never fully died, especially since Benzema announced he was retiring from the national team the very day after France lost the World Cup final. The timing made everyone suspicious.
4. The “Mysterious Social Media Disappearance”
In September 2022, Benzema just vanished from the internet. He deleted both his Twitter and Instagram accounts out of nowhere.
The guy had nearly 118 million followers. You don’t just do that without people noticing. The most popular guess was that he just wanted to clear his head and focus on soccer. Another theory said he did a “purge” and unfollowed everyone except five teammates.
Nobody knows the truth. He’s never explained it. For a superstar, doing something so sudden and weird just turned into a lasting mystery.
5. The “Drug Dealer Connections” Theory
On top of the sex tape mess, Benzema has also been linked to some shady criminal figures over the years.
During the Valbuena trial, a guy named Mustapha Zouaoui kept coming up. He was described as a “fixer” in Marseille, someone who helps celebrities with “problems” and hangs around with organized crime.
Late last year, new reports popped up linking Benzema’s name to drug trafficking and other illegal stuff. The details were really murky and unclea. But it still added more dirt to his already stained reputation.
FAQa
Q. Which club does Karim Benzema play for?
A. Benzema plays for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
Q. What did Benzema call Olivier Giroud in 2020?
A. Benzema compared Giroud to “karting” while calling himself “Formula 1.”
Q. How did Benzema respond to Didier Deschamps in 2023?
A. Benzema accused Deschamps of lying in Instagram posts.
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