Valbuena sex tape trial: Why is Benzema the main villain?

The Mathieu Valbuena sex tape scandal has come to a head this week, with a Versailles court finally hearing the case after years of delays. Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema is reportedly facing up to 10 months in prison and a 75,000 euro fine for his alleged involvement in the blackmail scheme if the judge finds him guilty of the accusations.

The trial took place over three days starting last Wednesday, but the judge has opted to postpone sentencing until November 24. According to Spanish publication Marca, Benzema's lawyers are quite baffled by the way the case has been handled by the prosecution and the press. First of all, the focus seems to be entirely on Benzema, with no one questioning Valbuena's actions on the creation of the sex tape in the first place.

"Valbuena is a victim of his acts, given that it was he himself who filmed the sex tape with which they later tried to blackmail him," the defence team said, pointing out that there was in fact a tape, and a young girl appears to have been an unwilling participant in the filming. Valbuena however, was the person holding the camera.

"He isn't filmed without knowing, he films himself in selfie mode. The young girl doesn't know she's being filmed, filming someone without knowing it during a sexual act is criminally reprehensible," said the defence, while also stating that the case has become a witch hunt for the biggest name involved, which in this case is Benzema.

"No-one has worried about this woman, not even the investigators. From the first moment of the accusation, they wanted to down a star and that's why they took it to the media from the start," the defence claimed.

While Valbuena is also a fairly prominent footballer, there is no doubt that the Real Madrid forward and now Ballon d'Or contender is the bigger fish. He has always maintained his innocence in the case, claiming that he only advised Valbuena on how he felt the problem of the leaked tape could be resolved. While Benzema has been portrayed as the villain, no one appears to be condemning Valbuena's actions.

Likewise, the fact that the actual perpetrators of the blackmail have owned up to it does not seem to be getting any attention either.