Burna Boy made history on Monday night as the first Nigerian artiste to present an award at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, held at the London Palladium.
The event brought together football’s biggest names and top stakeholders, with entertainers adding glitz to the occasion.
Burna Boy presented the Socrates Award, given annually to players and their foundations for outstanding humanitarian and social work off the pitch.
Invited to the stage by Kate Scott and Thierry Henry, the Grammy winner was asked about his football project.
He said the Burna Boy Football Academy was his way of giving back to the community, and he hopes one of his players will one day lift the Ballon d’Or.
“Hopefully I’ll come back one day to see one of my people [players] get the Ballon d’Or,” he said.
He then announced Bukayo Saka, the Arsenal winger, as the winner of the Socrates Award, recognising his humanitarian work, including funding eye surgery for a boy in Uganda.
His appearance in London comes just hours after he deliveredan electrifying performance at the 2026 NFL Paris halftime show, captivating the crowd at Stade de France during Sunday’s matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints. Cable
