Bukayo Saka shares a touching letter from a 14-year-old after winning the Socrates Award at the Ballon d’Or.
Bukayo Saka has just won the Socrates Award for his amazing humanitarian work. At the award ceremony, he ended his speech by sharing a touching story about a young child helped by a charity he supports.
Saka, who plays for Arsenal, works with the BigShoe charity. This group brings together football stars, fans, and partners to help children from poor areas. Recently, BigShoe helped pay for 120 life-changing surgeries for kids in Nigeria. Saka has also supported health check-ups for over 580 children in Rwanda. During his speech, he took a letter from his suit pocket to read a message from a 14-year-old boy in Rwanda.
Saka thanked France Football for giving him the award and then said, “I want to share a story from BigShoe about a boy whose life was changed. This is his story.”
The letter began: “Hello, everyone. My name is Biringiro, and I’m 14 years old. I live in Rwanda. When I was 12, I started to lose my sight. My village has no electricity, and walking around my house became very hard. At school, I couldn’t read the blackboard, and I struggled to play with my friends. I just wanted to be like other kids.
“But thanks to BigShoe, I got the eye care I needed. Now, I can read the blackboard clearly. More importantly, I don’t feel different anymore. I can enjoy being a kid again. For the first time in a long while, I’m excited about my future. I want to become an English teacher someday.
“I know many of you here have reached your dreams, and now I believe I can reach mine too. Thank you all so much. God bless you. — Biringiro.”
After reading the letter, Saka said, “It’s a real honor to be here and to accept this award for all the children we’ve helped. Thank you.”
The Socrates Award started in 2022 and is named after the famous Brazilian footballer Socrates, who stood up against Brazil’s military regime and worked to improve footballers’ rights.
Saka is the first English player to win. The first winner in 2022 was Sadio Mane for his charity work in Senegal. Vinicius Junior won in 2023 for helping in Brazil and fighting racism. Jennifer Hermoso was the first woman to win it in 2024 for raising awareness about sexual abuse. Luis Enrique won in 2025 for his work with the Xana Foundation, a charity supporting seriously ill children and their families after the loss of his daughter.