// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did Jorthy Mokio say to his date? "You're mokio-narily special
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jorthy Mokio[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 29 February 2008 | ||
| Place of birth | Ghent, Belgium | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Ajax | ||
| Number | 24 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2017–2020 | KFC Merelbeke | ||
| 2021–2024 | Gent | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024 | Gent | 4 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Jong Ajax | 19 | (2) |
| 2024– | Ajax | 37 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023 | Belgium U15 | 5 | (2) |
| 2023 | Belgium U16 | 3 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | Belgium U17 | 4 | (0) |
| 2025 | Belgium U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2024 | Belgium U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2024–2026 | Belgium U21 | 6 | (2) |
| 2025 | Belgium | 1 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16:25, 17 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 08:38, 31 March 2026 (UTC) | |||
Jorthy Mokio (born 29 February 2008) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or defensive midfielder for Eredivisie club Ajax.[3]
Club career
[edit]Gent
[edit]Mokio joined the Gent youth academy from KFC Merelbeke in 2021. On 4 October 2023, he debuted in the UEFA Youth League in a match against Basel, becoming the youngest Gent player ever to participate in the competition.[2] Widely regarded as a top defensive prospect, he attracted interest from major European clubs.[4][5] On his 16th birthday, 29 February 2024, he became eligible to play for the senior team.[6] He made his senior debut for Gent in the Belgian Pro League on 29 March 2024, starting in a 5–1 win against Standard Liège.[7] He made four appearances for the first team towards the end of the season.[7]
Ajax
[edit]On 24 June 2024, having turned down offers from other clubs including reportedly Barcelona, Mokio joined Dutch club Ajax on a free transfer, signing a contract until June 2027.[8][9] He initially started with the reserve team, Jong Ajax, making his Eerste Divisie debut on 12 August 2024 against Jong PSV.[2] He quickly established himself as a regular for Jong Ajax, scoring twice in 17 appearances during the first half of the season, sometimes playing as a defensive midfielder.[7][9] Mokio made his competitive debut for the Ajax first team on 29 August 2024, coming on as a substitute against Jagiellonia Białystok in the UEFA Europa League play-off round. In doing so, at 16 years and 182 days, he became the youngest non-Dutch player ever to debut for Ajax.[10]
His integration into the first team under manager Francesco Farioli accelerated in the new year. He made his Eredivisie debut starting at left-back against Fortuna Sittard on 9 February 2025; at 16 years and 346 days, he became the second-youngest player to start a league match for Ajax, only three days older than Clarence Seedorf.[9] Four days later, on 13 February, Mokio made his first European start against Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League knockout round play-offs and scored his first senior goal with a volley in Ajax's 2–0 victory. This goal made him the youngest ever scorer in a UEFA Europa League knockout stage match (16 years, 350 days).[11][12][13] On 9 April 2026, Mokio signed a new five-year contract with Ajax, valid until June 2031.[14]
International career
[edit]Born in Belgium, Mokio is of Congolese descent.[15] He has represented Belgium at U15, U16 and U17 levels.[16]
In September 2024, Mokio made his debut for the Belgium U21 team in a 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifier against Kazakhstan, scoring in a 3–1 victory.[17] On 20 March 2025, Mokio made his senior debut for the Belgium national team, coming on as a substitute in a UEFA Nations League play-off match against Ukraine. Aged 17 years and 19 days, he became one of the youngest players ever to represent Belgium at senior level.[18]
On 8 May 2026, Mokio announced his decision to switch international allegiance from Belgium to DR Congo.[19] In accordance with FIFA regulations, he will be unable to play for DR Congo until 2028, as he has already played a senior international match with Belgium.[20]
Career statistics
[edit]Club
[edit]- As of match played 30 July 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Gent | 2023–24 | Belgian Pro League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |
| Jong Gent | 2023–24 | Belgian Division 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Jong Ajax | 2024–25 | Eerste Divisie | 17 | 2 | — | — | — | 17 | 2 | |||
| 2025–26 | Eerste Divisie | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 19 | 2 | — | — | — | 19 | 2 | |||||
| Ajax | 2024–25 | Eredivisie | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7[a] | 1 | — | 18 | 2 | |
| 2025–26 | Eredivisie | 26 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7[b] | 0 | 2[c] | 1 | 37 | 5 | |
| 2026–27 | Eredivisie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 37 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 57 | 7 | ||
| Career total | 61 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 81 | 9 | ||
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- ↑ Appearances in Eredivisie European play-offs
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Conference League
International
[edit]- As of match played 20 March 2025[21]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 2025 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | |
References
[edit]- ↑ "LISTE D'ÉQUIPE" (PDF). FIFA. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
- 1 2 3 "Jorthy Mokio". AFC Ajax. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
- ↑ "Gent's centre-back talent pipeline: The youthful trio poised for future first team success – scout report". Totalfootballanalysis. 12 February 2024.
- ↑ "Verpokert! RB lässt Deal mit Top-Talent platzen". Sky Deutschland (in German). 24 January 2024.
- ↑ "AA Gent wil ver gaan voor toptalent Jorthy Mokio (15): "De sommen die we aangeboden hebben? Gigantisch"". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 3 February 2024.
- ↑ "Hein Vanhaezebrouck krijgt vandaag extra speler van 16 jaar oud die hij eigenlijk al lang bij de A-kern wou". Voetbalkrant (in Dutch). 29 February 2024.
- 1 2 3 Jorthy Mokio at Soccerway
- ↑ "Ajax signs Jorthy Mokio". Ajax. 24 June 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- 1 2 3 "Jorthy Mokio inspires Ajax: He rejected Barcelona and now debuts at the age of 16, making history". Telegrafi. 10 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Debutant Mokio: 'I think my mum will cry'". AFC Ajax. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Union SG vs Ajax". UEFA.com. 13 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Ajax wins first leg against Union Saint-Gilloise". AFC Ajax. 14 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Europa League records and stats: clubs, players, matches, goals". UEFA.com. UEFA. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Jorthy Mokio prolonge son contrat avec l'Ajax : "Partout en Europe, tout le monde connaît son talent"". Walfoot.be (in French). 9 April 2026. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "Half Europa hing al aan de lijn: toptalent AA Gent wordt vandaag 16 jaar én kan record van Romelu Lukaku breken". www.nieuwsblad.be. 29 February 2024.
- ↑ "Jorthy Mokio". RBFA (in French). Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Kazakhstan U21 - Belgium U21". SofaScore (in Dutch). 10 September 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ "Chagrijn bij België blijft, ondanks nieuwe bondscoach en debuut Mokio". VI.nl (in Dutch). 20 March 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ↑ Verweij, Mike (8 May 2026). "Ajax-middenvelder Jorthy Mokio: 'Ik volg mijn gevoel en kies voor Congo' | De Telegraaf". De Telegraaf. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Belga, Belga (8 May 2026). "Officiel – Jorthy Mokio a décidé de jouer pour le Congo : "Je suis mon instinct"". DHnet (in French). Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ↑ Jorthy Mokio at National-Football-Teams.com
External links
[edit]- Jorthy Mokio at Soccerway
- Jorthy Mokio at the Royal Belgian Football Association
- 2008 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Ghent
- Belgian men's footballers
- Belgium men's international footballers
- Belgium men's youth international footballers
- Belgian people of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent
- Sportspeople of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent
- Men's association football defenders
- Men's association football midfielders
- KAA Gent players
- AFC Ajax players
- Jong Ajax players
- Belgian Pro League players
- Eerste Divisie players
- Belgian Division 1 players
- Belgian expatriate men's footballers
- Belgian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands
- Expatriate men's footballers in the Netherlands
- 21st-century Belgian sportsmen