Overview

• King Charles conferred the knighthood on June 10, 2025, making Boston the first rugby league player to receive such an award
• Organisers advanced the investiture due to Boston’s diagnosis of vascular dementia and desire to honour him while he could attend
• Stephen Boston welcomed the accolade but said it had come “a little bit late” after more than 130 years without a rugby league knight
• Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy praised Boston’s barrier-breaking career and his contribution to British sports
• Boston scored a British-record 571 tries in 488 games for Wigan and was the first non-white player on a Great Britain Lions tour in 1954