Karim Benzema Open to Returning to French National Team for 2026 World Cup

Karim Benzema, the French football star and 2022 Ballon d'Or winner, has expressed openness to a potential return to the French national team ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In interviews with L'Equipe and France Info on December 11, 2025, Benzema suggested he would accept a call-up if approached, saying, "If you tell me to go to the French team to play a World Cup and I say no, I am a liar," and reaffirmed, "If I am called up to the national team, I will come."

Benzema last played for France in June 2022 but missed the Qatar World Cup later that year due to injury. His absence from the national team stretches beyond injury, as he was away from international football between 2015 and 2021 due to a personal scandal involving the Mathieu Valbuena sextape case. His return to the national squad began with Euro 2020 after the ban was lifted.

Now 37 years old and currently playing for Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad after departing from Real Madrid in 2023, Benzema has displayed excellent form this season, scoring 11 goals in 12 matches. Despite this, he remains somewhat ambiguous about his intentions but clearly values the significance of the World Cup, stating, "It's not something where you should say: 'No, I don't want to.' Because it's lying to say: 'No, I don't want to play a World Cup.'"

While Benzema indicates he does not consider his international career "unfinished," his remarks leave the door open for a high-profile World Cup comeback, which would add a revered veteran presence to the French squad competing in Canada, the United States, and Mexico starting June 11, 2026.

This development is significant for French football fans who have witnessed his prolific club career and are now anticipating whether Benzema's international journey will be renewed on football's biggest stage.