Karim Benzema will play for Al-Ittihad for the next two seasons. Transfer experts Fabrizio Romano and Nicolo Schira know this with certainty. The French striker, who played his last game for Real Madrid on Sunday, is reportedly going to earn €200 million net in Saudi Arabia.
Al-Ittihad representatives had already reached a verbal agreement in Madrid with Benzema, who will say goodbye to Real supporters in a press conference on Tuesday. Spanish media expect that Coco will be officially presented by the champion of Saudi Arabia a day later. The two-year contract that Benzema will sign contains according to ASH not only agreements about earning two hundred million euros net over two years, but also about a bonus.
The Frenchman can earn that bonus if he wants to be a figurehead for the World Cup bid that the Saudis want to submit for 2030. The amount of that amount has not been disclosed. The oil state is doing everything it can to organize the World Cup in seven years and hopes that not only Benzema, but also Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will help. The Portuguese already plays in Saudi Arabia, with Al-Nassr, and Messi is coveted by Al-Hilal.
On Sunday evening, Benzema took the lead in 648 games the Royal came to 354 goals, farewell to the crowd at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu with a goal. There was a 1-1 draw against Athletic Club and partly due to Benzema’s goal, second place behind champion Barcelona was secured. Benzema was also allowed to hold up the Champions League five times as a Real player and in 2022 won the Ballon d’Or, the prize for the best footballer in the world.