Personal life[edit]
Karim Benzema was born in the city of Lyon, France to French nationals of Algerian descent.[8][9] As a practicing Muslim, he observes fasting during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.[10] His grandfather, Da Lakehal Benzema, lived in the village of Tighzert, located in the northern town of Beni Djellil in Algeria before migrating to Lyon, where he eventually settled in the 1950s.[11] Benzema's father, Hafid, was born in Tighzert, while his mother, Wahida Djebbara, was born and raised in Lyon; her family originated from Oran. Benzema is the third youngest in the family and grew up with eight other siblings in Bron, an eastern suburb of Lyon.[11] His younger brothers Gressy and Sabri are also footballers.[12] The former currently plies his trade at the amateur level with Vaulx-le-Velin in the Division d'Honneur, the sixth division of French football, while the latter plays in the youth academy of a club in the family's hometown of Bron.[13][14] Since establishing himself as an international footballer, Benzema has been involved in numerous promotional campaigns. Since 2008, he has regularly appeared on the cover of the French version of the annual FIFA video game. Benzema is sponsored by German sportswear company Adidas and has, subsequently, appeared in several television advertisements for the brand.

On 18 April 2010, it was first reported by French television service M6 that four members of the French national team were being investigated for their roles as clients in a prostitute ring operated inside of a Paris nightclub, with some of the women possibly being underage or transgender. The players were eventually revealed to be Franck Ribery, Sidney Govou, Hatem Ben Arfa, and Benzema.[15][16] Benzema was alleged to have had a sexual rendezvous with a prostitute when she was 16 years of age, an act Benzema denied through his lawyer.[17] On 20 July, Benzema was questioned by Paris police and indicted on the charge of "solicitation of a minor prostitute."[18][19] In November 2011, prosecutors asked for the cases against Ribéry and Benzema be dropped, saying that the players were not aware that the escort, identified as Zahia Dehar, was 16 years old.[20] However, the case has gone on to trial. The first hearing was held in June 2013.[21]

On 3 February 2014 his longtime girlfriend, Chloé de Launay, gave birth to his daughter Mélia.[22][23]

§Club career[edit]
§Early career[edit]
Benzema began his football career at his hometown club Bron Terraillon SC at the age of eight. While at the club, he was nicknamed Coco by friends and, after scoring two goals in an under-10 match against the Lyon youth academy, began attracting attention from the biggest club in the city.[24][25] According to Serge Santa Cruz, who was president of Bron Terraillon in the 1990s, Lyon officials had visited him directly in an attempt to sign the youngster; however, Santa Cruz refused.[26] After talking with Benzema's father, the club allowed the player to undergo a trial with Lyon.[26] Following the trial, Benzema officially joined Lyon and was inserted into the club's academy at the age of nine.[27]

§Lyon[edit]
Benzema quickly ascended up the youth categories in the academy. He served as a ballboy during Lyon senior team matches and performed well in school being described as a student who was "discreet and respectful".[26][28] At under-16 level, Benzema scored 38 goals in the Championnat National des 16 ans, the domestic league for under-16 youth players in France.[29] Ahead of the 2004–05 season, Benzema was promoted to the club's reserve team, which was playing in the Championnat de France amateur, the fourth division of French football. Despite only playing with the team during the autumn campaign, he scored a team-high ten goals as the Lyon reserve team finished second in its group.[30]

§2004–2007[edit]
Benzema was called up to the senior team for the first time under manager Paul Le Guen during the break leading up to the second half of the season. As is customary with new players arriving at Lyon, the young striker had to stand up and speak to his new teammates, which at that time included the likes of Michael Essien, Sylvain Wiltord, Florent Malouda, and Éric Abidal.[31] While speaking, Benzema was subjected to jokes and laughter, which prompted the youngster to declare "Do not laugh, I'm here to take your place".[31] He, subsequently, made his professional debut on 11 December 2004 appearing as a substitute for Pierre-Alain Frau. Lyon won the match 2–0 as Benzema provided the assist on the second goal scored by Bryan Bergougnoux.[25][32] He would subsequently sign his first professional contract, agreeing to a three-year deal.[33] After making three more appearances as a substitute, on 2 April, Benzema made his first professional start in a 1–0 win over Lens.[34] He finished the campaign with six appearances as Lyon won its fourth straight league title.

Benzema began the 2005–06 season under the tutelage of new manager Gérard Houllier. Under Houllier, he struggled for meaningful minutes due to the presence of newly signed Brazilian striker Fred, as well as Wiltord. Benzema made his season debut on 2 October 2005 in a league win over Rennes appearing as a substitute.[35] On 6 December, he made his UEFA Champions League debut in Lyon's final group stage match against Norwegian club Rosenborg BK. On his competition debut, he scored his first professional goal in a 2–1 win.[36] A month later, Benzema scored his first professional double in a 4–0 win over Grenoble in the Coupe de France.[37] On 4 March 2006, Benzema scored his first professional league goal against Ajaccio in a 3–1 win.[38]

Benzema began earning more playing time in the 2006–07 season and made his competitive season debut in the 2006 Trophée des Champions against Paris Saint-Germain. In the French supercup, Benzema converted a penalty, which drew the match at 1–1. Lyon later won the league curtain-raiser 5–4 on penalties.[39] Benzema opened the league campaign on a quick note scoring in the team's first match of the season against Nantes.[40] Three weeks later, on 26 August 2006, Benzema appeared as a substitute and scored two goals in a 4–1 away win over Nice.[41] He also converted two goals in the Champions League group stage against Romanian outfit Steaua Bucureşti and Ukrainian club Dynamo Kyiv.[42][43] After appearing regularly during the autumn campaign, on 10 November, Benzema suffered a severe thigh injury.[44] The injury resulted in the striker missing three months of action before returning in February 2007. Benzema failed to score a goal until the final league match of the season against Nantes as Lyon recorded its sixth consecutive league title.[45]

§2007–08 season[edit]
For the 2007–08 season, with the likes of Florent Malouda, John Carew, and Sylvain Wiltord all departing from the club, Benzema, despite being 19 at the time, switched to the number 10 shirt and was inserted into the lead striker role. After forming a special relationship with new manager Alain Perrin, he responded with 31 goals in 51 games. He topped the league with 20 goals, scored four goals in the UEFA Champions League, one in the Coupe de la Ligue, and totaled six goals in six Coupe de France matches, helping Lyon win their first ever double.[46] Some of his more dazzling performances that season included a hat-trick against Metz on 15 September,[47] an equalizing goal in the 90th minute from a free kick against Derby du Rhône rivals Saint-Étienne,[48] and a goal against RC Lens that was nominated for goal of the season by fans.[49]

In the Champions League, Benzema scored an important double against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium on the last match day of the group stage. The 3–0 victory assured Lyon progression to the knockout rounds.[50] In the knockout rounds, Lyon faced Manchester United and Benzema continued to score, this time it was from outside the penalty box in the first leg match which ended in a 1–1 draw[51] and United eventually won the tie 1–2 on aggregate. Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and players praised Benzema for his performance.[52] Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas later accused Ferguson of tapping-up Benzema.[53][54]