AHEAD of this Saturday's Cultural Heritage match against Richmond, Bulldogs defender Buku Khamis expressed his love for the round and his own cultural heritage.

Khamis was born in South Sudan and migrated to Australia when he was six years old.

He says his love of footy came from watching it live for the first time, after that the rest is history.

“I was in primary school - grade 6 - and we went to a school excursion at Marvel Stadium to watch a footy game…I hadn’t really tried it or was interested but after that excursion, watching a footy game live, I really wanted to try,” Khamis said.

“I started kicking the ball at recess and lunch and then before I knew it I signed up for my local footy club.” 

Khamis spoke of his family's support for his AFL career and how special it has been to have them join him on his journey.

“It’s been really important, they’ve obviously been there with me throughout the whole journey so to be able to have them come to games as well it’s really cool,” he said. 

With the AFL Cultural Heritage Round taking place this weekend, Khamis says he is 'excited' to see the representation of so many different cultures. 

“I'm proud of my cultural heritage and it's good to see others as well, boys and girls today celebrate their cultures,” Khamis said.

“I think it's a good initiative from the AFL and the footy club as well.

“I’ve been really proud to be able to share a little bit of my journey along the way. I feel like it's important because everyone has different cultures and identities away from the footy club.

“Definitely excited to see everyone come together, I feel like that's what footy’s all about.

"One ball can bring so many people together, so many cultures, so to be able to see everyone at the game on Saturday night will be pretty cool.”