World Cup glory a step closer for former child slave granted asylum
Jun 17 2010 By Dan Hodges
A promising teenage footballer who escaped child slavery in west Africa has been allowed to stay in the UK to pursue his dream career on the pitch following a last-ditch appeal.
Lawyers working for 17-year-old Mathias Agebto gave up hope when he was refused asylum in August last year, but his case was then transferred to Hammersmith and Fulham Law Centre, which agreed to fight his corner at a tribunal in April.
Now Mathias has won the right to remain in the country – and he hopes to to win a professional contract after showing off his talents with his current team, Croydon Athletic.
It is a top result for the teenager, who was born and raised in the Ivory Coast and Togo before his father died and his mother sold him as a slave, at the age of eight, to a land owner in Ghana.
After four years' working on the land, sleeping in filthy conditions and being beaten, he fled, and survived on the streets before being spotted by a talent scout from a football academy in Accra, the capital of Ghana.
Mathias was brought to London to play in a tournament two years ago but was then abandoned, and was taken into the care of social services before his asylum claim was refused.
His victorious appeal is the first success of a new project by the law centre, based in King Street, which now has funding to fight for 50 young asylum seekers in similar positions over the next two years.
Mathias said: "I feel very happy now. My old lawyer was telling me I only had a 30 per cent chance of winning. He said he couldn't deal with my case.
"The law centre have worked hard for me and they did very well.
"It's important for me to be able to play football, more than anything else, and I'm working hard to get a professional contract.
"I play for Croydon Athletic and I'm studying for a BTEC in sport. I never saw myself going to college and having a good education – I never thought this would happen."
Solicitor Rachiel de Chavez, who built the case for Mathias to stay in the UK, said: "We're really working hard on cases such as Mathias's where everyone else has given up hope.
"We're hoping our project can help more people like Mathias stay in the UK and will offer the support that they need."
Mathias has now been taken under the wing of football consultant Musa Jalloh, a former Ajax player, who introduced the teenager to his hero, Emmanuel Adebayor.
Musa said: "Being an ex-footballer myself I can spot a player with potential when I see one. As long as he has the support and right people behind him, he'll make it."
