Out of the shadows: Benzema wins his first Ballon d'Or
This time, there is no dispute. Top scorer in last season's Champions League and LaLiga, he has the individual statistics and collective titles to finally find the spotlight.
He has never made numbers an obsession. But when his turn came to take the light and his responsibilities, he took them. And now he has been rewarded.
Twenty-four years after Zinedine Zidane, Benzema lifts the Ballon d'Or, becoming the fifth Frenchman to win the prestigious award after Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini, Jean-Pierre Papin and his former coach at Real Madrid.
At almost 35 years old - he will be in December - the Lyon-trained striker has reached the peak of his career after a long journey. At Real Madrid, nothing was offered to him.
He was criticised, by Jose Mourinho and by the press. He was put in competition with Gonzalo Higuain, Alvaro Morata twice, Jese, Borja Mayoral, Mariano Diaz and Luka Jovic. All of them were supposed to take his place or some playing time. None of them could dismiss him.
Lieutenant of Ronaldo, he preferred to help than to leave. He never claimed the main role, never complained and that is precisely why he became the favourite son of Florentino Perez.
With Benzema, the Madrid president deviates from his rule of only offering one-year contracts with an option to 30-year-olds.
Resilience pays off
To be a striker is to be selfish. In the case of Benzema, this individualism is less prevalent than in his counterparts. His style of play, made of stalls, passes and movement makes him an unclassifiable player, somewhere between the striker, the nine-and-a-half, the playmaker. Skills that took time to be understood and appreciated.
They have also become sharper as he has matured. Rarely injured, Benzema has been able to progress at his pace, without being slowed down.
Back in the French team since the Euros last year, he is no longer a silent player with the blue shirt for more than 1,000 minutes. The success has mitigated his extra-sporting problems and even his conviction has not influenced his season, completed in triumph at the Stade de France with a new Champions League, the fifth of his career.
More than a real goal, this Ballon d'Or is a symbol of perseverance.
"This prize in front of me makes me really proud. When I was small, it was a childhood dream, I never gave up... Anything is possible.
"There is no age, every day more and more players in their thirties show a desire to improve. I train more than the others and that, with my dream in my head, has allowed me to stay here and keep improving."
A man still wanting more from his career, Benzema is proving that age is just a number. Right now, the only number on his mind is one. One Ballon d'Or