To announce Afo Fasogbon as English rugby’s next big thing is not entirely accurate. He may be big – 6ft 4in tall and around 130kg – but as far as the internet is concerned he arrived some time ago. Video footage of the young Gloucester prop waving off the more experienced Ellis Genge after edging a scrummaging duel at Kingsholm last year went viral almost before Genge had reached the touchline.
Should the 21-year-old make a strong impact off the bench against Munster in Cork on Saturday evening, however, he could soon be vying for even greater recognition. England are suddenly lighter in the tight-head department after Will Stuart’s unfortunate recent achilles injury, with Asher Opoku-Fordjour also currently out of action. If Leicester’s Joe Heyes so much as breaks a fingernail, alarm bells will start ringing at Twickenham.
Northampton’s Trevor Davison could plug a short-term gap but, at some point, the power-packed Fasogbon will inevitably enter the conversation. Last month in the gym he set a new weight-training personal best – three back squat reps of 225kg – and he is not short on personality either. “My mates would say I’m pretty wired. I love a laugh, I love a bit of banter. They’d also say I’m quite chilled off the pitch – until it’s time to go to work.” Anything else? “They’d say I’m pretty loud as well.”
He is certainly the kind of guy whose character is transformed on a rugby field. “You do have to be a different person when you step across that white line. On game day it is just different, isn’t it?” Being pitched into tough environments with England Under-20s has also helped to shape his competitive edge. “Both our World Cups were in South Africa and our warm-ups were in Georgia. Growing up, I didn’t play many games at home. You’ve got to perform when your back’s against the wall and no one’s rooting for you. You’ve got make your own atmosphere.”
By now a couple of things should be pretty evident. If Fasogbon goes on to enjoy a lengthy Test career it will be good news for the Biro-chewing media. He is a cracking interviewee: chatty, engaging, honest and fun. Ask him, for example, if his meal times merely consist of two lettuce leaves and a slice of cucumber and he roars with laughter. “Ha-ha! Definitely not, no. I’m big on my proteins. I do love my meat. And maybe tuna. But unfortunately Archie ,my housemate doesn’t like the smell of tuna …”
Perhaps more pertinently English rugby may just have found a role model capable of inspiring big city kids from outside the RFU’s usual catchment areas. Fasogbon grew up in a football-loving community in Colindale, north London and, until he was 13, barely knew what rugby was. “Quite a lot of people had a negative view of rugby … where I was from, it was all football. We’d say: ‘We think football is the better sport, we’d never play rugby.’ And here I am eight years later doing it as a job that I love. Interesting, isn’t it?”
Having made the leap to Gloucester, via London Irish’s academy, it is his firm belief rugby is missing out on a load of raw potential in the state school sector. “Thinking back to it, I grew up with some absolute physical specimens. Maybe with a bit of coaching and the necessary desire, I reckon there could have been a bit of talent there. Maybe if rugby was presented more in schools … we only did it for half a term, I think.”
As a consequence he is still learning his demanding trade. Touring with England in Argentina and the United States this year and representing England A have helped his development but, with only 15 career Prem starts to date, consistency is his next goal. “Afo wouldn’t mind me saying there’s a few bits of his game he needs to tighten up on,” says George Skivington, Gloucester’s director of rugby.
“When he gets it right there’s not many people better; he just needs to get some behaviours right consistently. And then he’ll get to where he wants to be. Like any young man you arrive on the scene but the real challenge is getting the nuts and bolts right. Then you can see where you’re ceiling is and what’s possible. He knows that if he wants to get to the top level the ability to back it up is key.”
Fasogbon does not dispute this assessment, which may be shared by England’s head coach, Steve Borthwick. “I agree 100%. I don’t think I’m anywhere near where I want to be. I do understand I’m at the start of my journey. But even if it’s only by 0.5%, the aim is to get better every week.” This weekend will form part of that learning curve, with Skivington predicting an “intense” experience. Not only are Munster stinging from their 40-14 defeat in Bath last Saturday but staging the fixture at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, normally a Gaelic games stadium, will further up the ante.
Should he prosper and subsequently feature in the Six Nations, though, it would be massive for him and his extended family. His father, Bobby, owns a carpeting and furniture company while his mum, Olubunmi, looks after the mental wellbeing of hospital doctors and nurses. Both were raised in Nigeria and would be the proudest parents in the stadium – “I think they’d be super excited” – if their boy starts at Twickenham.
So will social media if he makes his Six Nations debut alongside the aforementioned Genge in the spring. “It would be class. I think he’s the modern-day prop so it would be sick. I’ve always said he’s someone I’ve looked up to.” Has that Kingsholm wave been forgiven? “It was good fun but it’s a thing of the past now. I don’t think there are any hurt feelings. Like we said at the start of this interview everyone’s a bit different on the field to what they are off it.”
And if a first senior cap does materialise in 2026 the big man insists he will be ready. “It is definitely something I’ve dreamed about since I first started playing this sport. And even more since I decided this is what I want to do as a career. My younger self would be over the moon, which is what keeps me motivated sometimes. It would mean so much to me.” Good luck to the affable Afo – and to all his future opponents.
