Burna Boy Makes History as the First Nigerian Artist to Present an Award at the Ballon d’Or Ceremony

Sign in Welcome! Log into your account your username your password Forgot your password? Get help Password recovery Recover your password your email A password will be e-mailed to you. Tuesday, October 27, 2026 Sign in / Join Home National Lifestyle Sports Bet Predictions World News FacebookInstagramTwitterVimeoYoutube Home National Lifestyle Sports Bet Predictions World News Search HomeEntertainmentBurna Boy Makes History as the First Nigerian Artist to Present an… Entertainment Burna Boy Makes History as the First Nigerian Artist to Present an Award at the Ballon d’Or Ceremony By GidiPoint.com October 27, 2026 0 8 Share Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Email Telegram Burna Boy made history on Monday night as the first Nigerian artist to present an award at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, held at the London Palladium.

The prestigious event gathered football’s top players and influential stakeholders, while entertainers brought added glamour to the evening.

On stage, Burna Boy presented the Socrates Award, an honor given annually to players and their foundations for exceptional humanitarian and social efforts off the pitch.

Burna Boy! 👋#ballondor pic.twitter.com/6fdXcww56A

Invited by Kate Scott and Thierry Henry, the Grammy winner discussed his passion project: the Burna Boy Football Academy, which he described as a way to give back to his community.

Burna Boy expressed his hope that, someday, one of his academy’s players might lift the Ballon d’Or themselves.

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 🏆 🦍 pic.twitter.com/8b3ntXt6Af

Burna Boy 🤝 Bukayo Saka pic.twitter.com/vBsrw3wCS9

He then announced Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka as the recipient of the Socrates Award, in recognition of Saka’s humanitarian work, including funding eye surgery for a boy in Uganda.

Burna Boy’s appearance in London followed an electrifying performance just hours earlier at the 2026 NFL Paris halftime show, where he captivated the crowd at Stade de France during Sunday’s matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints.

A familiar face at major sporting events, Burna Boy performed at the NBA All-Star Game and the UEFA Champions League final kickoff show in 2023. Alongside Shakira, he also took the stage at the inaugural FIFA World Cup halftime show in 2026.

Born Damini Ogulu, Burna Boy first gained prominence with “Like to Party,” the lead single from his debut album ‘L.I.F.E’ (2013). Since then, the Afro-fusion star has become one of Africa’s most celebrated music exports, with a discography that includes ‘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 distinction of being the most Grammy-nominated Nigerian artist, with 13 nominations, and won Best Global Music Album in 2021 for ‘Twice As Tall’.

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