Rugby World Cup star George Ford is married to a stunning refugee who achieved her dream of owning a restaurant.
The England fly-half has played a key part in Steve Borthwick’s side in England’s faultless World Cup campaign to date in what’s turning out to be a brilliant group stage story. But a different story of a totally different ilk has shaped the life of Ford and his wife off the pitch.
Ford, 30 married Kosovan refugee Atdhetare Hoxha in October 2022 after the couple began dating a couple of years earlier. Atdhetare fled war-torn Kosovo in 1999 with her parents and twin sisters Agnesa and Arneta at just four-years-old, after their home was bombed.
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Atdhetare and her family arrived in Oldham with her unable to speak English. But she had a dream since a young girl to own a restaurant, which she continued to work towards. On her dream, she said: “I came here as a refugee aged four during the Kosovan war. We had a great life back home. We had family businesses but they were taken away from us in a heartbeat.
“My dad started as a kitchen porter to improve his English. He always worked in restaurants, that’s where the passion comes from. When we came here, we had nothing.”
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Her family have been able to rebuild their lives in the North-West and currently own four restaurants, while Atdhetare now runs the popular Italian restaurant Sorella on her own. Her husband paid her huge praise in an interview with The Times earlier this year.
He said: "She does a bit of everything. She is the manager but if there is a problem, or a chef is ill, she will go in there and get her chef's gear on. She is so hard-working.”
Ford had seemingly been exiled by England having not played a Test match for over two years before he returned to the squad ahead of the World Cup earlier this summer. The Sale Sharks fly-half took the chance presented to him following the suspension of Owen Farrell to start against Argentina, putting in an impressive performance during the 27-10 win.
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