A pair of EFL footballers have been awarded the inaugural Sky Bet EFL Red Boot following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season on Saturday.
Swansea City’s Zan Vipotnik and Leyton Orient’s Dom Ballard are the first-ever recipients of the new award, which recognises the leading goalscorer across all three divisions of the English Football League (EFL) during the campaign.
Both strikers have enjoyed outstanding seasons on the pitch and finished Saturday tied on 23 goals apiece. Vipotnik fired home his 23-goal tally in 44 appearances with Ballard scoring the same amount in 40 games. They each also took home the Golden Boot for their respective divisions.
Not only do the pair go home with the brand new prize, but their goals take on even greater significance with Sky Bet donating £50,000 for every goal scored by the Red Boot winner to the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
Sky Bet have a long-standing relationship with the BHF as part of their Every Minute Matters initiative. It means that a total of £1.15million will go to the charity.
The inaugural Red Boot has been handed out to two players in the English Football League
The donation is part of Sky Bet’s pledge to donate up to £6m to the BHF across two years in order to help fund vital CPR training, improve community access to defibrillators and support the pioneering CureHeart research programme.
Earlier this season, £1,000 was donated by Sky Bet for every goal scored in the EFL across February. At the end of the month, £514,000 was raised for the charity.
Zan Vipotnik 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 £1million 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 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.
Dom Ballard (above) and Swansea City’s Zan Vipotnik won the prize on Saturday afternoon
‘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’.
Teresa Hicks, Director of Partnership & Relationship Fundraising at the British Heart Foundation, 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 can learn CPR in just 15 minutes by searching BHF RevivR or visiting revivr.bhf.org.uk
