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.
Burna Boy! 👋 #ballondor https://t.co/6fdXcww56A
— Ballon d'Or (@ballondor) October 26, 2026
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.
🚨Burna Boy takes the stage to present Bukayo Saka with the Socrates Award at the #BallonDor 🏆 🦍 https://t.co/8b3ntXt6Af
— HYPETRIBE (@hypetribeng) October 26, 2026
Burna Boy 🤝 Bukayo Saka https://t.co/vBsrw3wCS9
— Premier League (@premierleague) October 26, 2026
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 delivered
an 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.
Burna Boy is no stranger to major sporting events. In 2023,
he performed at the NBA All-Star Game and the UEFA Champions League final
kickoff show.
He and Shakira also lit up the stage at the first-ever FIFA
World Cup halftime show in 2026.
Burna Boy, born Damini Ogulu, first burst onto the scene
with ‘Like to Party’, the lead single from his debut album ‘L.I.F.E’ (2013).
Since his breakout, the Afro-fusion singer has become one of
Africa’s biggest music exports, releasing several acclaimed projects.
His albums include ‘L.I.F.E’ (2013), ‘On a Spaceship’
(2015), ‘Outside’ (2018), ‘African Giant’ (2019), ‘Twice As Tall‘ (2020),
‘Love, Damini‘ (2022), ‘I Told Them‘ (2023) and ‘No Sign of Weakness’ (2025).
He holds the record for the most Grammy nominations by a Nigerian artiste, with 13 nods, and won Best Global Music Album in 2021 for ‘Twice As Tall’.
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