Ballon d'Or: A dream come true for Karim Benzema

Childhood dream

"It was childhood dream to win this. I had two role models in Zidane and Ronaldo and I always dreamt that anything is possible. There was a difficult period where I wasn't in the French team but I never stopped working hard or gave up," Benzema said in his hour of glory.

"I'm really proud of my journey as it wasn't easy. To be here today for the first time, I'm happy and pleased my work has paid off. There're lots of people to thank. It's an individual prize, but also a collective one, because of everyone who played a role in it," he added.

Mission Qatar 2022

Benzema is set to be included in France's FIFA World Cup squad in the coming weeks with the Qatar 2022 tournament likely to be his international competition swansong.

Absent from his country's victorious 2018 World Cup campaign in Russia, he is now hoping to cap off an incredible year by helping France retain that title at Qatar 2022.

Redemption time

His victory was seen as such a foregone conclusion in France that the front page headline of newspaper Le Parisien was dedicated to him -- The revenge of the unpopular one -- it said. It is not long ago that Benzema, was a pariah, frozen out of the France team for five and a half years because of his involvement in a blackmail scandal over a sextape involving his former teammate Mathieu Valbuena.

The Lyon native went on trial late last year and was handed a one-year suspended prison sentence and a fine $73,848. In June he decided not to appeal his conviction, eager to turn the page and keep the focus on football.

Genuine contender

By then he had completed a stunning season with his club, propelling Real to glory in the UEFA Champions League as well as the Spanish title.

With the criteria for the prize having been changed to only take into account the last full season, rather than the calendar year, his performances meant there was little prospect of anyone else winning the Ballon d'Or.