Who are Victoria Mboko’s parents? Origin and all we know as Canadian teen dominates Coco Gauff

Up-and-coming Canadian tennis player Victoria Mboko made history against top seed Coco Gauff on Saturday, August 2, 2025.

Mboko, 18, was born in North Carolina, US, on August 26, 2006, per her Women’s Tennis Association (WTATennis.com) profile. According to the site, she is one of the four children of Cyprien Mboko and Godee Kitadi, immigrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to WTA, the pair emigrated from the DRC to the US in 1999 due to political turmoil and later relocated to Toronto, Canada.

 

 

 

 

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Victoria Mboko is the youngest of the four tennis-playing siblings raised by Congolese parents. Per WTATennis.com, her oldest brother, Kevin, and sister, Gracia, competed at the college level, while her other brother, David, quit the sport due to eye-related problems. Speaking to WTA for a player feature in May 2025, Victoria Mboko mentioned that her siblings inspired her to be a tennis pro:

“I just remember watching them from the sidelines and not wanting to be left out.”

Mboko, who claims she picked up a racquet at age 3, confessed during the conversation:

“I've actually never beaten any of them. I never like to lose a lot. I played my sister once in a tournament and I lost 0 and 0. I was absolutely devastated. They still hold that over me to this day!

Victoria is having an exceptional 2025, with five ITF (International Tennis Federation) titles so far.

Victoria Mboko became the second wild card in the Open Era to beat a top seed at the Canadian Open, after she upset Coco Gauff

 

 

 

 

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The Canadian rising star faced the reigning French Open champion in the National Bank Open’s Round of 16 as a main-draw wild card. Gauff, who is at the second spot in the WTA Singles rankings, was the favorite to win, but Mboko stunned her to clinch victory in just 62 minutes. The emerging athlete defeated her American opponent 6-1, 6-4, to reach the quarterfinals. After the win, she addressed the crowd and said in an interview (translated from French via SkySports):

“Your support was incredible. [...] I'm really happy to win today... It's incredible. I'm so happy to beat such a great champion."

According to WTA, the Canadian tennis pro is also the second-ever wild card in the Open Era to beat a top seed at the Canadian Open. Before Victoria Mboko, Stéphanie Dubois defeated Kim Clijsters in the 2006 edition. She is also the first Canadian to reach the quarterfinal stage of the Canadian Open since Bianca Andreescu in 2019. Andreescu won that year’s edition (Rogers Cup), defeating Serena Williams in the final.

In terms of age, she is also the fifth-youngest to win against a top seed at a WTA 1000 event. Additionally, Mboko is the youngest Canadian to reach the quarterfinals at the Canadian Open in four decades. Helen Kelesi reached the quarterfinals in the 1987 edition at 17.

Victoria, currently ranked a career-best No. 85 in singles, broke into the top 300 at the end of 2024. She has won eight ITF titles, including five in 2025. Mboko will next face Spanish pro Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the quarterfinals.