Boulaye Dia’s story is a compelling tale of transformation—from humble beginnings to remarkable success, embodying the classic “rags to riches” narrative. Growing up in France’s industrial valley of Oyonnax, Boulaye’s father played amateur football, but their circumstances were far from glamorous. Despite these challenges, Boulaye displayed remarkable resilience and intelligence from a young age.
The Inspiring Story of Boulaye Dia: Resilience and Success in Football.
He learned valuable lessons from observing the mistakes that curtailed his brothers’ football careers, using these insights to steer clear of similar pitfalls. Boulaye kept his football dreams alive while also preparing for an uncertain future. During his teenage years, he balanced his time between working as an electrician and playing amateur football, demonstrating a keen sense of time management and dedication.
Before his breakthrough with Reims, Boulaye’s strategic foresight ensured he had a backup plan in case his football aspirations didn’t pan out. His journey is a testament to his perseverance and hard work, and we’re excited to share the inspiring story of Boulaye Dia—a man who turned his dreams into reality against all odds.
Preamble:
Boulaye Dia’s story is about much more than just his football stats. It’s a journey through his childhood, early life, and family, including his parents and brothers—Harouna, Abou, and Diak. His personality, struggles, and determination are central to who he is today. This is the full story of a young man who once worked as an electrician and later lit up Ligue 1 with his goal-scoring talent.
We’ll start by exploring his early years, tracing the path from his humble beginnings to the moment he became a household name. To give you a taste of his remarkable journey, here’s a brief snapshot of Boulaye Dia’s life story.
The Complete Biography of Boulaye Dia. From his boyhood days right to when he became a Senegalese Celebrity.
Boulaye Dia Childhood Story:
For starters of his Biography, Boulaye Dia was born on the 16th day of November 1996 in Oyonnax, the second most populated commune in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.
The French-born footballer is the last-born child of his family. He is the youngest son (all boys) born of the union between his parents.
Growing Up Years:
The Reims striker grew up in the industrial valley of Oyonnax alongside his big brothers. From left to right, they include; Harouna, Boulaye (our focus), Abou, and Diak.
The bond between the brothers knew no bounds. From the onset, all the boys knew each other by heart. They have been united since the day of their birth.
Here are the brothers; Harouna (far left), Boulaye (our man), Abou (right) and Diak (far right)
Boulaye Dia Family Background:
The footballer comes from a poor family background. Research shows that Boulaye Dia’s father played as an amateur footballer in Senegal.
This was before he fled the country to France – to seek a better living. According to Boulaye’s eldest brother, Harouna, their Dad never wanted to become a professional.
During his Boulaye Dia’s childhood days, his family members shared a small apartment where they carved out living room spaces.
The fact that all four brothers shared a single small bedroom signifies his Dad and Mum weren’t that rich.
Boulaye Dia Family Origin:
Although born in France, many fans are aware Dia is of Senegalese descent. However, what is lesser known is Oyonnax, the town his mother had him.
This map portrays Boulaye Dia’s Family Origin.
As viewed from the map above, the commune is just a 1 hr 10 min (88.0 km) drive away from Geneva, Switzerland.
Also, the French city of Lyon is the closest to Oyonnax – a 1 hr 16 min drive (98.0 km). Oyonnax is an industrial town in the east of France.
Boulaye Dia Education:
Research has it that as a child, there was an idea of his Dad and Mum not wanting to see Dia compromise basic education for unimportant things like sports.
For this reason, football became secondary. There are no records of Dia going to school, but we do know he had some sort of technical education.
Boulaye Dia Biography – Untold Football Story:
From the onset, there were no such things as the quest to become a pro in soccer. Even as a child, only his big brothers engage in football. The fear of seeing their Dad having a failed soccer career alerted the boys of the risks.
However, the destiny to become a professional in football came in a divine way.
Once upon a time, luck fell in Boulaye Dia’s family as they got selected to play a 5-player competition. We refer to it as the Oyonnax neighbourhood tournament.
While every member of the family agreed, Boulaye’s Dad refused. According to Harouna, his eldest brother,
“Our father was not keen on participating. we forced him a bit. While On the road, he thought about it and rejected the idea. he got nervous and turned around.”
After much talking him into it, Boulaye’s Dad and his four brothers fielded in. A friend who stayed at the goalpost accompanied them. To the joy of his everyone, Boulaye Dia’s family won the tournament after facing and winning many opponents.
Early Career Life:
After the tournament, a leader of Plastics Vallée FC, the city’s flagship club, went up to negotiate with Boulaye Dia’s parents from the final whistle.
Following successful talks, his big brothers (Harouna and Abou) signed their first youth contract.
Our very own Boulaye followed suit sometime later. Pictured below, he took his time before enrolling for Plastics Vallee FC.
Here are the brothers: Harouna (far left), Boulaye (our man), Abou (right) and Diak (far right)
At the end of the day, after the boys got back from training, they would each discuss their exploits.
While everyone said sweet things about their performance, Boulaye wasn’t allowed to speak. This was because his brothers felt and knew he had not performed well. While always keeping him silent, Boulaye once told his brothers;
You all will see someday. If there is one who succeeds in Football, it will be me.
Truly, the youngster never lied. Little did anyone know he would (in years’ time) join the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly, former 2021 World Best Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, and a host of others in becoming the face of the Senegal national team.
Through football, Boulaye became the sole breadwinner of his family. Sadly, all his big brothers (Harouna, Abou, and Diak) never reached the professional world.
Football was a waste of time for them but a big source of motivation for Boulaye. We’ll tell you how the Senegalese achieved success in the next section of his Life Story.
Road to Fame Story:
The family breadwinner grew up into an observer of his big brothers. Of course, he considers Harouna, Abou and Diak as his role models.
Among everything they did, he drew only the best. Boulaye was a smart kid who saw mistakes that killed his brothers’ careers and learned to avoid them. He kept his ambition at the back of his mind.
Young Boulaye Dia in his early career years.
Mixing Factory and Amateur Football:
Before exploding in Reims, Boulaye Dia was wise enough to look for an alternative should in case football failed to work out. During his teenage years, he became an electrician.
Even as a teenager, the wise boy employed the concept of time management. This was seen in his routine of working for an electrical factory and also playing amateur football.
Failed Trials and the Thought of Giving Up on Football:
At 12, he tried his hand at Saint-Étienne but failed. An inconclusive test at Olympique Lyonnais followed. With the approval of his family, he travelled a 752 km journey to Wales – for a trial at Wrexham A.F.C.
Sadly, that turned out to be another failure. Having seen he could not move past amateur football, Boulaye considered giving up on the game.
Just at the time the striker was on the verge of hanging up his boots, a close friend to his parents (by the name of Guy Herbain) spoke to him in a harsh tone. In his words,
“This is the only time I saw someone speaking to me very badly. He told me he saw me as a fool, who would only keep fooling around, not to stop, if I hang my boots.
That my brothers had already wasted their potential…and it will be my turn if I giveup”
Boulaye Dia Biography – The Success Story:
After hearing the last member of his family was to give up, the assistant coach of Plastics Vallée FC intervened. He offered Boulaye a fixed-term contract, which relaunched him back to football.
Still, in the absence of a pro club, he was allowed to later join the Hope Centre of Jura Sud, 20 km from his family home.
After three seasons, Dia already had his senior team debut. He began on a humble note in the Championnat National 2 (fourth tier of the French League system). In the 2017/2018 season, Dia scored 15 goals in 21 appearances.
Continuing his rise in the football world, Boulaye Dia took a major step forward by signing a professional contract with Stade de Reims on July 16, 2018. This came after a standout debut season with Jura Sud Foot, where he first showcased his potential and set the stage for greater success. He only played six matches before he became a first-choice striker for the senior squad.
Since the 2019-2020 season, the goal-scoring machine has never looked back. The poacher has shown a fantastic leap and a determined attitude.
Seasons ago, Boulaye Dia’s Bio once ranked the highest goal scorer in Ligue 1 – with only Kylian Mbappe scoring more. This feat has made big clubs all over Europe beg for his signature.
According to the Butfootballclub website, Stade de Reims will not necessarily have the knife under its throat to sell Boulaye Dia – a target of OM and a host of premier league clubs.
Whichever way things turn out, fans believe he (like Nicolas Jackson) is up to the task ahead. For the family, it is mission accomplished, reputation installed, and destiny finally delivered.
As I update this Boulaye Dia Biography, he had achieved a meteoric rise with Villareal, where he once striked alongside Arnaut Danjuma and Gerard Moreno. Alongside Bamba Dieng and Iliman Ndiaye, he is a vital member of Aliou Cisse‘s Senegalese national team.
The rest of his Life story, as they say, is history.
Personality:
In this section, we’ll help you get to know the striker’s personality – away from football. Starting off, he is someone who never forgets where he comes from, and we have proof of that.
Once upon a time, Boulaye Dia went to visit his ex-work buddies at GMC. This is a plastics manufacturing and trading plant where he worked before becoming a soccer superstar.
Upon reaching there, he first went straight to greet his former colleagues rather than coming directly to see the boss of the company. It is not because they had a quarrel. It is just something about his humility.
Back then at the factory, Boulaye was a model employee and a real hard worker. People who know him would say he is very punctual, does not count his hours, and is able to adapt to all situations.
After work, he takes his golden feet for training sessions, where he prepares for the professional world.
Boulaye Dia Lifestyle:
Looking simple and smart is something many football fans aspire to. Senegal’s very own Dia keeps true to themselves through his awesome collection of simple wear matched with cool sneakers.
Outside football, the Forward live a simple lifestyle and are NOT easily noticeable by expensive cars, big houses, buzz, girls, parties, etc.
At the age of 24, Boulaye has the hobbies of the modern generation. Like most stars, he does love to play video games and fancies watching the NBA.
Boulaye Dia Net Worth:
Considering his senior career only started at 22, it is fairly easy to weigh the value of his non-financial and financial assets – especially as we know his salary at Stade de Reims.
As of the start of 2021, Boulaye Dia’s net worth is valued at 750,000 Euros. This figure is set to increase as we keep tabs on the fast-rising transfer speculations surrounding him.
Boulaye Dia Family Facts:
By now, we are all aware the goal-scoring machine isn’t the son of a rich man and also never grew up having things at his beck and call.
Boulaye comes from an ultra-united Senegalese family. In this section, we’ll tell you what we know about his household.
About Boulaye Dia’s Parents:
From the onset, they were of the view that their sons hold on to at least something (not football) even though of little substance – that would help them survive life.
For this reason, Boulaye Dia became a holder of a professional baccalaureate in electricity at the age of eighteen years. If football had not worked, he would have still survived life.
According to IGFM Senegal, Boulaye Dia’s mother has never worked, and his Dad faced health problems that prevented him from becoming a footballer.
It was hard for him to deal with retirement from football. Without a doubt, the father of four would be glad his last-born son is living his sporting dreams.
About Boulaye Dia’s Brothers:
The Goal Poacher, who plays as a forward for Senegal, comes from a home of Testosterones. Even though they clung to a dream of becoming footballers, there are no regrets about having failed careers because one of them (their youngest) made it.
In an interview with Boulaye Dia’s Brothers, one of his elder ones, Abou Dia, once said;
“Since we were little, we have promised each other things that should exists between brothers. That is love!
We have been through hardship, I can’t say everything. We are always there for our little one who made it, ”
As a professional footballer with a baccalaureate as an electrician in his pocket, Boulaye Dia takes care of his brothers, parents, uncles, aunt, and other relatives who live in Oyonnax and Senegal.
Conclusion:
Many thanks for taking the time to read the Life Story of Boulaye Dia. In the course of our research, we found out that his Biography has an important lesson about the word – Hope.
Because Boulaye aspired like Sadio Mane, he was able to see the light among all the darkness which came his way. As I write his Bio, he has become a Jewel made in Ligue 1.
The former electrician wouldn’t have seen success if not for his brothers – Harouna, Abou, and Diak. Despite giving up on their careers, the boys created a path for Boulaye. So far, there have been ups, downs, and controversies in his career, such as when Dia landed in hot waters after he refused to play in a match.
As a wise boy, he learned from the mistakes of his brothers, took his chances, and grew above factory work and amateur football. It was hard for one of his parents – his Dad – to deal with having a failed career. Thankfully, his last son restored his old dream.
Fact Check:
We care about accuracy in our quest to deliver you Senegalese Soccer Stories. Kindly stay tuned for more! The Life History of Aliou Cisse and Ismaila Sarr will interest you.
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