New Award Celebrates EFL’s Top Scorers
Two English Football League (EFL) footballers have made history by being awarded the inaugural Sky Bet EFL Red Boot following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season. Swansea City’s Zan Vipotnik and Leyton Orient’s Dom Ballard are the first-ever recipients of this new award, which recognizes the leading goalscorer across all three divisions of the EFL during the campaign.
Both strikers had outstanding seasons on the pitch and finished the season tied with 23 goals each. Vipotnik achieved his 23-goal tally in 44 appearances, while Ballard scored the same number in 40 games. They each also took home the Golden Boot for their respective divisions.
The significance of their achievements is further enhanced by a charitable initiative from Sky Bet. For every goal scored by the Red Boot winner, Sky Bet donates £50,000 to the British Heart Foundation (BHF). This means that a total of £1.15 million will be donated to the charity as a result of the goals scored by the winners.
Sky Bet has a long-standing relationship with the BHF through their Every Minute Matters initiative. This partnership includes a pledge to donate up to £6 million to the BHF over two years. The funds will support vital CPR training, improve community access to defibrillators, and aid the pioneering CureHeart research programme.
Earlier this season, Sky Bet donated £1,000 for every goal scored in the EFL during February. By the end of the month, £514,000 was raised for the charity.
Personal Achievements and Charitable Impact
Zan Vipotnik expressed his pride in winning the Red Boot. He said: ‘To win the golden boot in the Championship was very special, but to also win the red boot as the joint topscorer across all the three divisions of the EFL is a great honour. There are some great strikers who have done so well across the Championship, League One and League Two, and to have the most goals, alongside Dom Ballard, is an achievement I am proud of. What makes it extra special is knowing that this award will also provide great assistance to the British Heart Foundation, with over £1 million raised from the goals I scored as part of the “Every Minute Matters” campaign. To be able to be part of something that can make such a difference and help save people’s lives is an incredible feeling.’
Dom Ballard also shared his feelings about the award. He said: ‘The football is one thing but to raise that kind of money for such a great cause is another thing entirely. It is such a great feeling to have helped Sky Bet and the EFL do something massive, and I know every penny will be used wisely. Of course it’s also a massive achievement for me personally and even though we’ve had a tough year, it’s a nice way to end the season. I just love scoring goals, I knew coming to the club that the gaffer has a great track record with improving strikers and I feel like I’ve definitely got better here and I’m happy here and want to continue to improve and hopefully score even more. It’s an unbelievable personal achievement but I wouldn’t have been able to win it without the help of my teammates, not only on the pitch but also with how they helped me settle into the club so quickly off it.’
Support from the British Heart Foundation
Teresa Hicks, Director of Partnership & Relationship Fundraising at the British Heart Foundation, praised the efforts of the players and Sky Bet. She said: ‘Thanks to Sky Bet and The Red Boot, every strike this season has meant so much more than celebration, helping turn goals into vital funds that will power our lifesaving work. We’ve loved watching EFL players lace up for a brilliant cause – and with every goal scored by our Red Boot winner, the fundraising total has kept climbing up the table. That support will help get more people kitted out with potentially lifesaving CPR skills, help improve access to defibrillators in communities across the UK, and support the pioneering BHF CureHeart research programme into inherited heart muscle diseases.’
Fans interested in learning CPR can do so in just 15 minutes by searching BHF RevivR or visiting revivr.bhf.org.uk.
