(CNN) Manchester City and England star Raheem Sterling has been honored for his role in the fight against racism in football at an awards ceremony in London.

He was presented with the Integrity and Impact Award -- founded by Dow Jones Sports Intelligence -- by his international manager Gareth Southgate at the BT Sport Industry Awards on Thursday.

The recognition comes during a year in which the winger has become a central figure in highlighting and challenging the racial abuse and lack of diversity prevalent in the sport.

On being presented with the award, Sterling said: "I was just speaking about my personal experiences, I didn't expect it to get so much attention, I just wanted to bring it to the attention of my audience on Instagram. It's been really pleasing to see people listening and trying and do better."

He added that he, himself, had been influenced by his own footballing role-models. "Partly what happens when you try to do good things is you set examples for the next generation coming through," he explained.