Jorthy Mokio

Jorthy Mokio
Mokio with Ajax in 2026
Personal information
Full name Jorthy Mokio
Date of birth (2008-02-29) 29 February 2008 (age 18)
Place of birth Ghent, Belgium
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
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 45 (4)
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)
2026– DR Congo 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:02, 10 October 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:45, 2 October 2026 (UTC)

Jorthy Mokio (born 29 February 2008) is a professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder or defensive midfielder for Eredivisie club Ajax. Born in Belgium and having represented his birth country at youth and senior international levels, he plays for the DR Congo national team.

Club career

Gent

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. Developing initially as a ball-playing centre-back, he was widely regarded as a top defensive prospect and attracted interest from major European clubs. On his 16th birthday, 29 February 2024, he became eligible to play for the senior team. 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. He made four appearances for the first team towards the end of the season.

Ajax

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. He initially started with the reserve team, Jong Ajax, making his Eerste Divisie debut on 12 August 2024 against Jong PSV. During his period with Jong Ajax, his positional development transitioned toward midfield, scoring twice in 17 appearances during the first half of the season while regularly featuring as a defensive midfielder. 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.

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. 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).

In the 2025–26 season, Mokio established himself as a central midfield regular. On 14 December 2025, he scored in a 2–0 win against rivals Feyenoord in De Klassieker, becoming the second-youngest scorer in the fixture's Eredivisie history at 17 years and 289 days, behind only Nwankwo Kanu. On 9 April 2026, Mokio signed a new five-year contract extension through June 2031 under technical director Jordi Cruyff.

Style of play

Initially developed through Gent's youth academy as a left-footed centre-back, Mokio subsequently transitioned into midfield roles at Ajax. Belgium under-21 manager Gill Swerts described him as an athletic, press-resistant player possessing vertical drive and passing precision, noting that while Belgium youth teams occasionally deployed him at centre-back or left-back, his natural vision and problem-solving qualities allowed him to dictate play effectively from central and defensive midfield.

International career

Born in Belgium, Mokio is of Congolese descent. He has represented Belgium at U15, U16 and U17 levels.

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. 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.

On 8 May 2026, Mokio announced his decision to switch international allegiance from Belgium to DR Congo. In accordance with FIFA regulations, he will be unable to play an official match for DR Congo until 2028, as he has already played a senior international match with Belgium.

Mokio was one of the players who were called up with the DR Congo national team by head coach Sébastien Desabre for the two friendlies against Uganda (2 and 5 October).

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 October 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Gent 2023–24 Belgian Pro League 400000—40
Jong Gent 2023–24 Belgian Division 3 10———10
Jong Ajax 2024–25 Eerste Divisie 172———172
2025–26 Eerste Divisie 20———20
Total 192———192
Ajax 2024–25 Eredivisie 1110071—182
2025–26 Eredivisie 262227021375
2026–27 Eredivisie 810070—151
Total 4542221121708
Career total 69622211219410
  1. ↑ Includes KNVB Cup
  2. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  3. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  4. ↑ Appearances in Eredivisie European play-offs
  5. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

As of match played 2 October 2026
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Belgium 202510
DR Congo 202610
Total20

References

  1. ↑ "LISTE D'ÉQUIPE" (PDF). FIFA. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Jorthy Mokio". AFC Ajax. Retrieved 8 October 2026.
  3. ↑ "Jorthy Mokio nieuws en statistieken". Voetbal International (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 October 2026.
  4. ↑ "Gent's centre-back talent pipeline: The youthful trio poised for future first team success – scout report". Totalfootballanalysis. 12 February 2024.
  5. ↑ "Verpokert! RB lässt Deal mit Top-Talent platzen". Sky Deutschland (in German). 24 January 2024.
  6. ↑ "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.
  7. ↑ "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.
  8. 1 2 3 Jorthy Mokio at Soccerway
  9. ↑ "Ajax signs Jorthy Mokio". Ajax. 24 June 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  10. 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.
  11. ↑ "Debutant Mokio: 'I think my mum will cry'". AFC Ajax. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  12. ↑ "Union SG vs Ajax". UEFA.com. 13 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  13. ↑ "Ajax wins first leg against Union Saint-Gilloise". AFC Ajax. 14 February 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  14. ↑ "Europa League records and stats: clubs, players, matches, goals". UEFA.com. UEFA. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  15. ↑ "Klassieker van de jeugd: over Steur en zijn teamgenoten" (in Dutch). AFC Ajax. 15 December 2025. Retrieved 8 October 2026.
  16. ↑ "Ajax slaat grote slag: Mokio zet handtekening onder nieuw contract". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 9 April 2026. Retrieved 8 October 2026.
  17. ↑ 'It's my job & my future' | Jorthy Mokio on contract extension & connection with Jordi Cruijff (in Dutch). Ajax TV. 24 April 2026. Retrieved 8 October 2026 – via YouTube.
  18. ↑ "'Mokio gaat een fantastische carrière tegemoet'". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 3 April 2026. Retrieved 8 October 2026.
  19. ↑ "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.
  20. ↑ "Jorthy Mokio". RBFA (in French). Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  21. ↑ "Kazakhstan U21 - Belgium U21". SofaScore (in Dutch). 10 September 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  22. ↑ "Chagrijn bij België blijft, ondanks nieuwe bondscoach en debuut Mokio". VI.nl (in Dutch). 20 March 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  23. ↑ 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)
  24. ↑ 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.
  25. ↑ "RDC : 2 listes, 4 matchs en 12 jours, 14 nouveaux… La trêve internationale s'annonce folle pour les Léopards" (in French). afrik-foot.com. 11 September 2026.
  26. ↑ Jorthy Mokio at National-Football-Teams.com