Burna Boy turns into first Nigerian artiste to current award at Ballon d’Or ceremony

Burna Boy made historical past on Monday evening as the primary Nigerian
artiste to current an award on the Ballon d’Or ceremony, held on the London
Palladium.

 

The occasion introduced collectively soccer’s largest names and high
stakeholders, with entertainers including glitz to the event.

Burna Boy offered the Socrates Award, given yearly to
gamers and their foundations for excellent 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 requested about his soccer challenge.

He stated the Burna Boy Football Academy was his means of giving
again to the neighborhood, and he hopes certainly one of his gamers will at some point carry the
Ballon d’Or.

“Hopefully I’ll come again at some point to see certainly one of my folks
[players] get the Ballon d’Or,” he stated.

🚨Burna Boy takes the stage to current Bukayo Saka with the Socrates Award on 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 introduced Bukayo Saka, the Arsenal winger, because the
winner of the Socrates Award, recognising his humanitarian work, together with
funding eye surgical procedure for a boy in Uganda.

His look in London comes simply hours after he delivered
an electrifying efficiency on the 2026 NFL Paris halftime present, charming
the gang at Stade de France throughout Sunday’s matchup between the Pittsburgh
Steelers and New Orleans Saints.

Burna Boy isn’t any stranger to main sporting occasions. In 2023,
he carried out on the NBA All-Star Game and the UEFA Champions League closing
kickoff present.

He and Shakira additionally lit up the stage on the first-ever FIFA
World Cup halftime present 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 change into certainly one of
Africa’s largest music exports, releasing a number of acclaimed initiatives.

His albums embody ‘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 document for probably the most Grammy nominations by a
Nigerian artiste, with 13 nods, and gained Best Global Music Album in 2021 for
‘Twice As Tall’.

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