The phone call that made Briton an NFL trailblazer
Image source, Getty ImagesByBen CollinsBBC Sport JournalistSeydou Traore has been waiting four hours for the phone call that will change his life. When it comes, he is the picture of calm. Next to him, his mum Zaia is anything but.
Traore and his family are sitting backstage at the NFL Draft, where the 23-year-old Briton - who did not see his loved ones for five years after moving to the US to try to become an NFL player - has just been told his dream is coming true.
Zaia, who is French-Algerian, lets out a 'zaghrouta' - a celebratory trilling sound that is traditional in north Africa - sheds tears of joy and has an out-of-body experience in a reaction that goes viral.
"I was in a trance," she tells BBC Sport. "I was like 'oh my God, it's happening, he's done it'. That's what I kept telling myself. It was pride and relief because it's been years, and it was all worth it."
Of all the social media content around Seydou's achievement in being the first graduate of England's NFL Academy to complete his pathway to the NFL, it is the clip of his mum he keeps watching.
He knows that she knows exactly what it has taken to defy the odds and become an NFL trailblazer.
A pep talk from the great Travis Kelce was just a tiny part.
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Born and raised in south London, Traore was naturally athletic and tried many sports. He was playing football as a goalkeeper when he found American football at 16 with London Warriors.
In 2019 he earned a place in the first intake at the NFL Academy, a development programme initially based in north London and now in Loughborough. The academy recruits from many sport backgrounds and American football experience is not necessary.
Almost all draft prospects come through the American college system, which is why the academy was designed to help international players earn scholarships and prepare them for the NFL, mentally and physically.
Each year about one million teenagers play American football at high school in the US. About 0.08% of them reach the NFL.
One can therefore imagine how the odds are stacked against an international player like Traore.
But he applied himself to his dream, getting up at 5am and working all day every day to get better, either at the academy or training.
Traore's mum was in the kitchen when he came in and told her: "Some Americans want to speak with you. I've been talking to them for a while and, basically, I'm going to America."
Unknown to Zaia, her son had secured a spot at Florida high school Clearwater Academy. She told him: "I can't afford to come and see you, you'll be there by yourself."
For Traore's sister Zeinab, four years his senior, the thought of him moving 4,500 miles from home was even more difficult.
"He's like my first child so I'm protective," she says. "I was concerned at first. I thought it was too big a jump because he was still young."
Image source, NFL UK/NFL AcademyImage caption, Seydou met Jerry Rice at the NFL Academy in 2019 and interviewed him for a social media clip, in which the NFL legend told Seydou to "pour yourself into what you're trying to accomplish"
Traore had been laying the foundations for this move for some time, making videos to showcase his skills.
One of them found its way to Clearwater head coach Jesse Chinchar.
"Wow, who's that?" Chinchar wondered as he watched a 6ft 3in guy leaping in the air to make a one-handed catch.
Little did he know that he was watching a Londoner who was yet to play a full-sided game of American football. But Clearwater had a track record of recruiting international players and helping them earn college scholarships.
"I did a bit more digging but there was no game film, just clips of him doing athletic stuff," says Chinchar.
"We got talking to Seydou and it felt like he was going to compete and wanted it for all the right reasons. You could tell how much it meant to him.
"It was kind of a wild adventure because he was one of the most raw, unknown commodities we had brought in, but we thought 'if this kid comes over and it works out, this could change his life'."
Image source, NFL UK/NFL Academy/Getty ImagesImage caption, Since the NFL Academy try-outs in 2019 (left), Seydou has increased his body weight by more than 25% - bulking up from 193lb (87kg) to 244lb (111kg) without losing any of his speed or athleticism. He says consistency with training and nutrition has been key
From day one Chinchar thought "we got something".
Traore learned his first playbook in a matter of days, which is like learning a new language. And playing as a wide receiver, he was immediately dominant against kids who had played the game their whole life.
"Hand-eye coordination, tracking and locating balls, leaping down low or up high, and attacking the ball at corner kicks, that translates very well," Traore says.
"That's how American football is when they throw the ball up to you, you attack it at its highest point."
Chinchar agrees, adding: "I've felt that my guys who had a background in soccer have that understanding of spatial awareness, which I think in [American] football is an under-rated trait."
Chinchar was also impressed by Traore's character and self-belief. Even when he received his first college offer, he bet on himself getting a better one. That eventually came from Arkansas State.
Their head coach Butch Jones was working late when his tight ends coach came into his office and said: "I keep hearing about this player. I think he's special, there's something different about him."
They watched videos of Traore and Jones soon made a "hefty comparison". He called Seydou a clone of Travis Kelce, whom he coached at Cincinnati and helped convert into one of the best tight ends in NFL history.
"Seydou's size and stature coupled with his athleticism - the way he ran, the way he caught the ball – it made him a rare commodity," says Jones. "He had unlimited potential."
Traore had barely played at tight end and had already committed to another college. Jones therefore had to 'flip' him - so he called on his old friend.
He set up a group video call in which Kelce gave Seydou some advice and convinced him to trust coach Jones and his staff. Seydou signed in February 2021 and transitioned to tight end, showing natural instincts for the position.
Traore saw himself as a "big ball of clay" that Jones could mould, and the coach says he was "like a sponge" in terms of retaining information.
"In his first year Seydou looked like a young deer that could run but hadn't really matured yet, grown into his body," adds Jones.
"By year two you could see that development. He made some plays where you were in awe on the sideline."
Like Kelce, Traore can hurdle defenders, and in 2022 he was named the best tight end in the Sun Belt Conference. But he was determined to step up to the top level of college football, Division 1 FBS.
Seydou spent early 2023 with Colorado, whose tight ends coach called him out during a news conference, questioning his "toughness" and work ethic.
"We talked a few times when he was at Colorado, going through some tough times," says Jones.
"There was a lot of adversity through his journey, but he never gave up. He had that mental disposition it takes, every single day, to fight off the doubt that can creep in, especially when you're away from home."
In those moments, Seydou thought about his family.
"Knowing what I'd left and what I was trying to become was very motivating," he says.
After a term at Colorado, Seydou felt it best for his development to move on and he went to Mississippi State, who play in college football's most prestigious conference, the Southeastern.
But because he had transferred twice in quick succession, NCAA rules meant he could not play during 2023. All he could do was train.
It was then that Seydou found out just how much he wanted it. He treated it as a chance to improve his game, and when he finally played for Mississippi State in 2024, he was one of their top receiving threats.
Then in 2025, he began to catch the eye of NFL scouts. He scored a career-high five touchdowns and became a fans' favourite for his new tea-sipping celebration, a nod to the British stereotype.
Seydou's family also visited twice, seeing him for the first time in five years and witnessing just how "crazy" American college sport is.
There was a military flyover, fireworks and a cacophony of cowbells among the 60,000 crowd - a long-held tradition at Mississippi State.
With Seydou's college career now complete, it was time to enter the NFL Draft.
NFL teams recruit their best players through the draft, a three-day process that has become one of the biggest events in the NFL calendar.
Each year about 260 players are selected across seven rounds. They get a call from their new team and a few minutes later their name is announced on stage. A record 805,000 fans attended this year's draft in Pittsburgh.
Hundreds of prospects are evaluated by NFL experts and Seydou was projected to be picked on the final day, when rounds four to seven take place.
Former player Efe Obada was there to support the international hopefuls. Having also gone from London Warriors to the NFL, he is an academy ambassador and saw Traore at the try-outs in 2019.
So after the Miami Dolphins called Traore late in the fifth round, Obada "kind of hijacked" his announcement.
He ran into the office NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was using and told him "I wanna do it". Goodell agreed it "made sense" and they went on stage together to welcome Traore into the NFL.
"I thought it would be symbolic, passing on the torch," says Obada. "I've kind of gone through that journey and I wanted people to know that it's a moment. [Being drafted] doesn't just happen. This sport is about endurance and commitment."
As a former London Warriors coach, Aden Durde was aware of Traore's talent before he too attended the first academy try-outs.
And the British defensive co-ordinator, who helped the Seattle Seahawks win the Super Bowl in February, smiled when he heard Traore's name mentioned during this year's pre-draft process.
"It's so cool to see him go to different colleges and really kick down the door and break barriers," he says.
"That was the vision of the NFL Academy all those years ago. He's the first one and there's going to be plenty more. It's exciting times."
Travis Clayton was the first ex-academy player to be drafted but only spent a brief period with the programme in 2019 and did not attend a US college, so Traore is the first of its alumni to follow the full pathway.
Since the academy's inception more than 40 students have secured college football scholarships in the United States.
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Seydou Traore's college football coach sees similarities to Travis Kelce
Traore has remained cool, calm and collected throughout his journey, even when he strode on to the NFL Draft stage. Draped in a British flag, he stopped to put on a Dolphins cap and do his tea-sipping celebration for the camera.
But one day in June, far from the draft spotlight, his excitement got the better of him.
Zeinab says they used to joke about who would be the first to buy their mum a house. Seydou knew he had won when he signed a four-year rookie contract worth $4.8m (£3.6m).
And it was his older sister, not his mum, whom he called to say "I'm signing right now!"
Not all drafted players are guaranteed to play from the start of their rookie season. Teams must whittle their roster from 90 or 91 players down to 53 by 31 August.
Traore is trying to earn a spot during Miami's training camp but is backing himself to continue his remarkable journey in the NFL.
"It feels good [to be here]," he adds. "But I keep telling everyone, it's just the beginning."
