Striker Karim Benzema has been suspended from the French national soccer team until an investigation into possible blackmail involving a teammate’s sex tape is concluded.
Benzema is accused of trying to blackmail another France player, Mathieu Valbuena, over the tape. A French judge is investigating the case, and Benzema has not been charged.
“I have decided that he is not available for selection,” the president of France’s soccer federation, Noël Le Graët, said Thursday. He called dropping Benzema a “heartbreaking” decision.
Benzema cannot play for France, Le Graët said, until the case is resolved. France will host the European soccer championship in June, the biggest tournament held there since the 1998 World Cup.