Taylor Cox from north London played football for Finchley Revolution before being signed for Borehamwood football club at the age of 16.
He had dreams of becoming a professional footballer but on the day he was supposed to receive his new kit, he was stabbed.
The incident affected his confidence and ruined his life, his parents said.
By the time of his death in 2021, Mr Cox, then aged 19, was a member of a street gang called the A Team, which was in a bloody feud with a rival gang.
He was said to have been on a “ride out” in their territory when he was fatally shot in an alleyway in Hornsey, north London, on June 8 2021.
Speaking after his killers were jailed on Friday, his father, David Campbell, told the PA news agency his son had a “heart of gold” and loved spending time with his mother, Kerri Cox.
On the event which changed the course of his life, Mr Campbell said: “We signed him up for Borehamwood Football Club and he got stabbed on the day he was meant to get his football kit and after that he lost interest.
“It sort of ruined his life after he got stabbed.
“He didn’t even want to retaliate after that. We moved away and he started to come back to himself.
“He wanted to drive and get his licence. He was doing a lot to change his life around and he was a lovely boy.”
Referring to Mr Cox’s mother, he said: “It’s been hard for her because they were like soulmates.
“He wanted to do mechanics and build a family, get a home and move on with his life.”
Robel Michael, 22, of Islington, Jaden McGibbon, 22, of Crouch End, and Sichem Mangituka-Mpelo, 22, from Holloway, were found guilty of his murder in October.
Sentencing at the Old Bailey on Friday, Judge Rebecca Trowler KC jailed them for life with a minimum term of 27 years for Michael and 26 years for McGibbon and Mangituka-Mpelo.
Speaking outside the court, Mr Campbell said the men had ruined their own lives, his son’s and all those connected to the case.
Mr Campbell said: “My message to them is that they’ve wasted four lives.
“They’ve wasted their lives and now my son’s gone so they are the ones who have got to live with it and their families will too.
“It’s a tragedy for everyone involved.”
The sentencing came after a retrial which finished in October.
The family spoke of their relief at justice being served and the emotional nature of sitting through two separate trials.
Mr Campbell added: “We have mixed emotions about the sentencing. We think it should be longer but that’s the criminal system.
“At least we got justice and I think it’s been a long time going over this. But we’ve got to the end of it and it’s some relief to the family.
“We went through nine weeks (of the first trial in 2022) and after that there was an eight-month delay before the retrial and it was hard having to do it all over again. The emotions were going up and down and it’s been a hard time.”
Mr Campbell and Ms Cox appeared tearful as their son’s killers were sent down to begin their life sentences.
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