Karim Benzema Saudi Arabia move: Ballon d’Or winner to leave Real Madrid after 14 years

The Karim Benzema Saudi Arabia rumours are true.

Al Ittihad have officially announced the arrival of the French striker, who has signed a three-year contract until 2026. Benzema will earn a salary of €200 million per season, and follows his former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo to Saudi Arabia following the Portuguese’s move to Al-Nassr during the January transfer window.

The Frenchman made his final appearance for Real Madrid in a press conference on 6 June, and received a send-off in the final La Liga match of the season.

He had an agreement with Real Madrid over a new contract until 2024, but it was only verbal one with nothing signed. And having informed president Florentino Perez about the crazy financial offer from Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, he could end his stay at the club this summer.

Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Benzema’s departure came out of nowhere. The striker informed the club the morning of the announcement. He will further clarify his stance in the press conference on June 6.

Karim Benzema Saudi Arabia rumours: Ballon d’Or winner chooses Al Ittihad

The reigning Ballon d’Or winner has not been able to build on the consistency he showed last season. And the main reason behind that has been his struggle with injuries this time around. However, whenever he has been fit to play, he has delivered, scoring 18 goals in 23 La Liga appearances.

The offer from Al Ittihad will see Karim Benzema earn €100 million without taxes per season, which is far more than he could earn with Real Madrid. Although he has maintained that he wants to retire at the Santiago Bernabeu, this offer has emerged to simply be too good to turn down.

Spending 14 years at the club, Benzema has established himself as an icon. He is among the top scorers in the history of Los Blancos, and has been the star forward since Cristiano Ronaldo left in 2018. His overperformance last season was perhaps the biggest reason why Madrid ended up winning their 14th Champions League title last season, defying all odds.

It now seems likely that Real will have to dive into the transfer market to sign a replacement for their outgoing number 9. Here are the likely options to replace him.