Why a 15-year-old ‘forever young’ Congolese player has cooked a Twitter storm

Elia Balamwabo is officially a 15-year-old Congolese who recently emerged the best player at an U-16 football event that took place in his country.

Balamwabo, captained the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, team that won the tournament.

The side he led beat Senegal 3 – 1 in the final of the U-16 African Schools Cup organized by the world and continental football governing bodies, FIFA and CAF respectively.

The tournament ended on February 21 with Morocco also emerging champions in the female competition.

But what has triggered massive social media reactions is the physical looks of Balamwabo along with his reported age of 15.

Photos of him kissing his winner’s medal, granting an interview and receiving the final trophy has been widely shared across African countries with comments suggesting that he is no where near 15 but rather further away from that age.

The issue of Africans using “football age” i.e. a reduced age that allows them to compete in particular age-specific competitions has been reignited.

At the just ended AFCON, the Cameroonian captain Vincent Aboubakar also became the butt of jokes when it emerged that he was 29 years.

Back to Balamwabo, see some reactions to his age below: