‘If I get the call, I’m going’ – Karim Benzema leaves door open for France return for the 2026 World Cup

Al-Ittihad centre-forward Karim Benzema (37) has revealed he would be open to a return to the French national team to play the 2026 World Cup . In a wide-ranging interview with L’Equipe , the 2022 Ballon d’Or winner said that every football player would be keen to feature in a World Cup . Given his troubled history with Les Bleus , Benzema only played the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He was snubbed in 2010 by Raymond Domenech. In 2018, he was out of the picture completely due to the fallout of the sextape case involving him and Mathieu Valbuena.

He was called up to take part in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but he sustained an injury in his first training session before France’s tournament even began. Benzema then left France’s camp in rather unusual circumstances. He didn’t feature for France ever since, fueling the belief that he would never wear France’s jersey again, but Benzema never publicly announced his international retirement.

“ But who doesn’t want to play in the World Cup? Everyone wants to play in it”, Benzema says. “ I love football and competition, so if I say no to going to the French national and playing in the World Cup , I’d be a liar. “

Benzema even went as far as saying that he would welcome a return to Les Bleus in time for the World Cup . “ I’m a football player, I play football. If I get the call, I’m going and I’ll play football. If I’m called up for the national team, I’ll go to play football, that’s it.”

GFFN | Bastien Cheval