Spain World Cup hero adopted rescue dog from Bulgarian shelter

Spanish footballer Ferran Torres, who scored his country's World Cup winner on Sunday, has adopted Milo, a rescue dog from the Street Hearts BG shelter in the village of Glushka, near Dryanovo in North Central Bulgaria, the organization's founder and director, Emma Smith, told BTA.

According to Smith, Milo's story began in June 2021, when three abandoned puppies were found beneath a bridge in the Dryanovo area. A British citizen alerted the shelter, whose team then organized a rescue operation, CE Report quotes BTA.

"The puppies were extremely frightened, severely underweight and covered in fleas and ticks. They had clearly been abandoned for some time. We managed to catch them, brought them to the shelter, where they were examined by veterinarians, vaccinated and then we began looking for permanent homes for them," Smith said.

In September 2021, Torres adopted Milo through a UK-based organization that was working with the shelter at the time. The footballer was then playing for Manchester City, where Milo lived with him. When Torres moved to Spain following his transfer to Barcelona, he took the dog with him. Today, Milo lives with Torres and his three other pets.

Smith said the world-famous footballer's decision was a recognition both of the shelter's work and of the qualities of Bulgaria's rescue dogs.

"It was a tremendous honour for us that Ferran chose to adopt a dog from our shelter. Milo is an exceptionally intelligent dog, and Ferran is a wonderful ambassador for Bulgarian rescue dogs because he regularly shares photos of Milo on social media. Thanks to that, we have also been able to find homes for many of our other animals," she said.

According to Smith, the organization has neutered around 5,000 dogs, but its main mission remains finding permanent homes for stray animals.

"I hope Ferran Torres' example will encourage more people in Bulgaria to adopt a dog from a shelter. We have so many wonderful dogs waiting for their families," she added.

She stressed that adoption knows no social or national boundaries.

"Anyone can adopt a dog, whether they are a footballer, work in a shop or live in a small village. It simply shows that a person has a kind heart. What matters to us is not social status but how people treat animals," she said.

The latest information the shelter has is from 2025, when Milo was thriving, had fully adapted to life in Spain and was still living with Ferran Torres.

Emma Smith founded and runs the Street Hearts BG shelter in the village of Glushka. She moved to Bulgaria from the United Kingdom in 2013 during a career break from the British police. After encountering the problem of stray dogs in the area, she and her husband, Anthony, established the organization. It initially focused on a neutering programme for stray animals before expanding its work to include rescue and adoption.

On Sunday, Torres became one of the world's most talked-about footballers after scoring the only goal in Spain's 1-0 extra-time victory over Argentina in East Rutherford, New Jersey, US, during the FIFA World Cup final.

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