Karim Benzema on Monday evening won the men's Ballon d'Or for the first time after a brilliant season with Real Madrid capped by the Champions League and Spanish league titles.
Benzema, who led Madrid to the Champions League and La Liga titles last season, is the ffifth Frenchman to win it after Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini, Jean-Pierre Papin and Zinedine Zidane, who was crowned in 1998, the year France won its first World Cup.