Real Madrid and France forward Karim Benzema has won his first Ballon d’Or. Benzema beat Bayern Munich’s Sadio Mane to the men’s top prize, with Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne in third place.
In the women’s award, England forward Beth Mead had to settle for runner-up as Barcelona and Spain midfielder Alexia Putellas won the trophy for the second successive year.
Benzema, 34, helped Los Blancos win the Champions League, defeating Liverpool in the final, to add to their La Liga success in 2021-22.
He scored 44 goals in 46 games across all competitions. After being presented with the award at a gala ceremony in Paris by Zinedine Zidane, the last Frenchman to win the accolade, in 1998, Benzema said: “Seeing this prize in front of me makes me really proud. “It was a childhood dream for me and all the work I have done, I never gave up.