Laurent Imbert, edited by Juliette Moreau Alvarez
modified to
8:40 a.m., October 17, 2022
The Ballon d’Or ceremony is approaching. The big favorite of this 2022 edition: the Frenchman Karim Benzema. In Bron, in his childhood club, young aspiring footballers already see him trophy in hand. For them, no doubt, Benzema is the player of the year. And among them, the attacker’s niece, Safia.
Monday evening, Karim Benzema awaits the consecration. The French striker of Real Madrid, should, except huge surprise, receive the 66th Ballon d’Or during a ceremony organized at the Châtelet theater. A reward which would crown the enormous season of the Blues striker, and which would also be a source of enormous pride for the young players of the Sporting Club of Bron-Terraillon, in the Lyon suburbs, the club where Karim Benzema touched his first balls when he was nine years old.
“He is the only one who had an extraordinary season”
On the pitch, there are a few of them who wear Real Madrid’s n°9 shirt. Here, everyone is sure that Karim Benzema will win the trophy, like 13-year-old Florent. “He’s the only one who had an extraordinary season if I may say so. He scored plenty of goals, crazy statistics. He won everything, he served his team, he was an excellent captain. A good example for his team and to lead them to victory.”
Among the licensees, a somewhat special 13-year-old player: the niece of Karim Benzema. Safia hopes her uncle will be crowned Ballon d’Or. “It would be a pride, a joy,” she says. “It would be exceptional. He started from nothing and he became a big star. He played basic ball like that, and then he ended up at a big club.”
Safia plays in U15, attacker, in the same position as her uncle. When he sees her, Uncle Karim even gives her valuable advice. “Sometimes he tells me how to hit, because I can’t hit well, how to position myself well on the pitch…” Karim Benzema sometimes returns to the club, with the greatest discretion. If he meets him, the young Aymen already knows what he will do. “I will say to him, ‘you are lucky in your life and I would like to be like you'”. At the club, everyone hopes that the child of the country will soon return the golden ball under his arm.