Maria Arthuer is the mother of Nico Williams. Nico is a professional football player who plays as a winger.
He currently plays for La Liga club Athletic Bilbao and the Spain national team. Maria originally belonged to Ghana.
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Who is Maria married to?
Maria Arthuer has been happily married to her husband, Felix Williams. They exchanged their wedding vows in Ghana.
After getting married they immigrated to Spain for a better life. From their marital bliss, they became parents of two children.
They welcomed their first child, a son, on June 15, 1994, and named him Inaki Williams Arthuer.
After eight years, they welcomed their second child on July 12, 2002, and named him Nicholas "Nico" Williams Arthuer.
Risked their lives to reach Spain
Maria and Felix migrated from Ghana to Spain out of desperation.
After traveling for days in the harsh conditions of the Sahara Desert, they were abandoned in the middle of nowhere.
With Spain in mind, they walked through the desert barefoot while starving and quenching in thirst. They also had a risk of robbery and other danger of desert.
After the desert, they had to cross the Mediterranean Sea.
When they reached Spain, they tried to cross the border fence at Manila but were spotted by the police which led them to get arrested.
They were going to be deported for illegal immigration into the country but while in custody, Maria realized she was pregnant with their first child.
She instantly regretted traveling through such harsh conditions as it could have killed her baby in her womb.
They were soon contacted by a lawyer from a Catholic NGO who came as their saviors. They fought their case and soon were granted Asylum.
They were allowed to live in Spain legally.
They were provided shelter and a house by a catholic priest named Inaki Mardones in Barakaldo, a municipality located in the Biscay province of the Basque country in Spain.
Not only this but the priest also helped them adapt to their new surroundings and life in Spain.
She then gave birth to their first child at the Hospital de Cruces in Barakaldo.
To repay for the kindness the priest had shown them, they named their first child after him. So this is the reason their first child has a Spanish name.
She didn’t approve of her son playing for Ghana
Both her sons, Inaki Williams and Nico Williams are footballers. Inaki plays as a forward for La Liga club Athletic Bilbao and the Ghana National team.
Since both her sons are eligible for dual citizenship, they can play from Ghana or Spain.
Inaki started his international career on March 20, 2015, by joining Spain U21.
He started his senior career with the Spain national team during UEFA Euro 2016 and made his senior team debut on May 29, 2016, at a friendly match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
However, Inaki didn’t see much of an opportunity at the Spain national team so he decided to play for Ghana.
He said his parents are from Accra and it would mean more to them if he represented Ghana internationally.
He announced that he will play with Ghana for the 2022 FIFA World Cup on July 5, 2022. He was selected for Ghana's squad for the finals in Qatar.
Her husband, Felix, supported their son's decision and even talked with Ghana Football Association officials to discuss the possibility of switching his national allegiance to Ghana but Maria was not on board with the decision.
She didn’t want her son to represent Ghana and one of the reasons was the constant verbal abuse the Ghanaian players go through.
Named Athletic ambassador
On the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Bilbao club, Maria was named the June Ambassador.
The honor was given to recognize the invaluable contribution the migrant community arriving in Euskal Herria has been making to Athletic since its foundation.
There are countless migrant footballers and their families who have been a part of Athletics for 125 years.
Maria received the 125th-anniversary badge in a special edition of Athletic's Letrak eta Futbola contest titled The Social and Cultural Value of Migration.
