Super Eagles and Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen has been named Sportsman of the Year in Turkey at the 2025 GQ Türkiye Men of the Year Awards.
The Nigerian forward was honoured at the annual ceremony, recognising his exceptional performances for his club.
Last season, Osimhen was a talisman for Galatasaray — scoring 37 goals and providing seven assists in all competitions as the club won domestic honours.
This campaign has seen him continue his remarkable form, with 11 goals in 14 appearances so far. After receiving the award, Osimhen thanked the organisers, his club, and the supporters. “This means so much to me and my family. I will continue to do my best for my family, for Galatasaray, for the fans all over the world,” he said.
Editorial
Awards often arrive at the juncture where labour meets legacy they are the punctuation in a season’s unfolding narrative. Victor Osimhen’s coronation as Sportsman of the Year in Turkey is more than a mere accolade it is a testament to the kind of transformative imprint a single performer can leave on a club, a league, and a nation’s sporting psyche.
Osimhen’s story in Istanbul has been one of ambition matched by execution. In an age when forwards are measured as much by influence as by goals, he has satisfied both metrics. His tally both prolific and poetic speaks not just to finishing but to presence to the way he occupies spaces defenders fear and how, in moments of pressure, he simply rises. Turkey recognised not merely his statistics, but his impact.
Yet what makes this recognition particularly resonant is the context. Galatasaray is not merely a club it is a cultural institution where expectations are pitched as high as the fevered chants of its supporters. To thrive here demands more than technique it demands resilience against scrutiny and hunger beyond habit. Osimhen has provided that, and in doing so he has redefined what excellence looks like in a league rich with history.
For Nigerian football so often export-oriented in its aspirations his success serves as both beacon and blueprint. It is not enough to be talented one must be relentless. In lifting this award, Osimhen joins a rarefied company but also underscores a simple truth: football honours those who embrace its pressures and then, with grace and ferocity, transcend them.
Did You Know?
- Osimhen was the top scorer in the Turkish Süper Lig in 2024/25, finishing with 26 goals, a tally that crowned him Gol Kralı (Goal King) of the league.
- During that breakthrough season, he also helped Galatasaray secure the Turkish Cup, scoring in the final and breaking longstanding club scoring records.
- Osimhen became the first Galatasaray player to score in seven consecutive major European matches a feat that highlighted his impact on the continental stage.
- Earlier in the year he won the Best Goal of the Season in Türkiye for a spectacular overhead kick an award voted on by fans and experts alike.
- Off the field, he has broken commercial ground in Turkey, reportedly earning record pay for a single football advertising campaign a first for a footballer in the country’s history.
