Sports · Football · 45 mins ago
Vinícius Júnior invites Sudanese boy Zaher to a Real Madrid match
Zaher, a 13-year-old from Sudan, lost both legs in a 2024 drone strike in Khartoum, where the army and the Rapid Support Forces have been fighting since 2023.
He and his mother later moved to Cairo, where he had surgery and months of rehabilitation.
He can now walk and kick a ball with prosthetic legs.
Zaher had said that Real Madrid winger Vinícius Júnior was his favourite footballer, and the player sent him a personal video message.
Vinícius invited Zaher to attend a Real Madrid match and spend the day together.
Zaher hopes to get a visa so he can accept the invitation.
More than 17 million children in Sudan need humanitarian assistance, according to Unicef, which has verified that at least 4,300 children have been killed or maimed in the conflict.
Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior invited 13-year-old Zaher to attend a Madrid match and spend the day together.
Zaher lost both legs in a drone strike in Khartoum in 2024.
After surgery and months of rehabilitation in Cairo, Zaher can walk and kick a ball again on prosthetic legs.
The boy, who named Vinícius as his favourite footballer, said the player’s message had uplifted him.
Zaher hopes to get a visa so he can accept the invitation.
- Who
- Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior invited Zaher, a 13-year-old boy from Sudan.
- What
- Vinícius sent Zaher a video message and invited him to attend a Madrid match together.
- When
- The article was published on 11 November 2026; the invitation was made in a video message.
- Where
- Zaher is living in Cairo, Egypt. The match would be in Madrid.
- Why
- Zaher had named Vinícius as his favourite footballer, and the player wanted to send him a message of support.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces began fighting.
Zaher lost both his legs in a drone strike in Khartoum.
Zaher told BBC that Vinícius Júnior was his favourite footballer.
Zaher lived in Cairo, where he underwent surgery and months of rehabilitation.
BBC reported Vinícius’s video invitation to Zaher.
- Zaher’s age
- 13
- Injury
- Lost both legs in a 2024 drone strike
- Current home
- Cairo, Egypt
- Prosthetics
- Zaher can walk and kick a ball again
- Invitation
- Attend a Real Madrid match with Vinícius Júnior
What people are saying
I would like to invite you to attend a Madrid match. We can spend the day together.
His message has really uplifted me.
Tell Vinícius, I love him.