Pacifique Niyongabire

Pacifique Niyongabire

Niyongabire warming up for Perth Glory in 2022
Personal information
Date of birth	(2000-03-15) 15 March 2000 (age 24) [1]
Place of birth	Bujumbura, Burundi
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Tampa Bay Rowdies
Number	27
Youth career
	Playford City Patriots
	Gawler Eagles
2017–2019	Adelaide United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2017–2021	Adelaide United NPL	56	(25)
2018–2021	Adelaide United	20	(1)
2021–2022	Perth Glory	17	(0)
2023	Valour FC	25	(1)
2024–	Tampa Bay Rowdies	4	(0)
International career‡
2022–	Burundi	5	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11 April 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 12 September 2023

Pacifique Niyongabire (born 15 March 2000) is a Burundian professional footballer who plays as a winger for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the USL Championship and the Burundi national football team.

Early life

Niyongabire was born in Burundi, and spent his early childhood in Tanzania, before migrating to Australia with his family at age seven. ^[2] In Australia, he played youth football with the Playford City Patriots and Gawler, before joining Adelaide United at age 17. ^[2]

Club career

Niyongabire was initially given a scholarship to the Adelaide United Football Schools, after being discovered by the club. ^[3] He began playing for the Adelaide United NPL team in the second-tier NPL South Australia. ^[3] On 14 January 2018, he was called up to the Adelaide United first team in the A-League Men, making his professional debut against Sydney. ^[3] In March 2018, he signed a two-and-a-half year scholarship contract with the first team. ^{[3] [4]} On 30 July 2020, he scored his first A-League goal against Perth Glory. ^[5] In June 2021, he departed the club, upon the expiry of his contract. ^[6]

In August 2021, he signed with Perth Glory in the A-League Men, following a successful pre-season trial. ^{[7] [8]} In December 2022, he terminated his contract by mutual consent with the club to pursue another playing opportunity. ^[9]

In December 2022, he signed with Canadian Premier League club Valour FC for the 2023 season. ^[10] Niyongabire made his debut for Valour FC on 16 April 2023 against York United, recording an assist in the match. ^[11] He scored his first goal for the club on 20 May 2023 against Pacific FC. ^[11]

In January 2024, he joined USL Championship club Tampa Bay Rowdies for an undisclosed fee. ^{[12] [13]}

International career

On 16 November 2022, he made his debut for the Burundi national football team in a friendly against Ivory Coast. ^[14]

On 19 November, he scored in a 1–0 victory in an unofficial friendly against Guinea U23. ^[15]

On 25 March 2023, he scored his first goal for the national team in a friendly match against Indonesia in a 3–1 loss (his previous goal was considered unofficial, as the match was not against a senior national team). ^{[16] [17]}

In June 2023, he was called up for his first official tournament match ahead of a 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match. ^[18]

Personal life

He is the younger brother of Elvis Kamsoba, who is also a professional footballer who also plays on the Burundi national football team. ^[19]

Career statistics

Club

As of 7 October 2023 ^{[20] [21]}

Club	Season	League			Playoffs		Domestic Cup		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Adelaide United NPL	2017	NPL South Australia	19	5	—		—		—		19	5
	2018		14	10	1	0	—		—		15	10
	2019		13	7	—		—		—		13	7
	2020		6	2	—		—		—		6	2
	2021		4	1	—		—		—		4	1
	Total		56	25	1	0	0	0	0	0	57	25
Adelaide United	2017–18	A-League	1	0	0	0	0	0	—		1	0
	2018–19		0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2019–20		3	1	—		2	0	—		5	1
	2020–21		16	0	2	0	—		—		18	0
	Total		20	1	2	0	2	0	0	0	24	1
Perth Glory	2021–22	A-League	17	0	—		1	0	—		18	0
	2022–23		0	0	—		0	0	—		0	0
	Total		17	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	18	0
Valour FC	2023	Canadian Premier League	25	1	—		1	0	—		26	1
Career total			118	27	3	0	4	0	0	0	125	27

International

As of 12 September 2023

Burundi
Year	Apps	Goals
2022	1	0
2023	4	1
Total	5	1

International goals

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	25 March 2023	Patriot Chandrabhaga Stadium, Bekasi, Indonesia	Indonesia	3–1	3–1	Friendly

References

1. Pacifique Niyongabire at WorldFootball.net
2. Phillips, Liam (5 August 2020). "Former Eagles make splash on the big stage". The Bunyip .
3. "Reds sign Pacifique Niyongabire to scholarship contract". Adelaide United FC . 6 March 2018.
4. Greenwood, Rob (8 March 2018). "Adelaide United signs teenager Pacifique Niyongabire on A-League scholarship contract". The West Australian .
5. Filosi, Gianluca (31 July 2020). "Niyongabire delighted to score maiden Adelaide goal". Adelaide United FC .
6. "Adelaide United scholarship update". Adelaide United FC . 28 June 2021.
7. "Glory swoop for young dynamic duo". Perth Glory FC . 1 September 2021.
8. Taylor, Nick (31 August 2021). "Perth Glory add Pacifique Niyongabire and Antonee Burke-Gilroy for the next two seasons". The West Australian .
9. Morgan, Gareth (15 December 2022). "Niyongabire departs by mutual consent". Perth Glory FC .
10. "Valour FC sign Burundian forward Pacifique Niyongabire". Valour FC . 19 December 2022.
11. Marchetti, Christian (5 July 2023). "Pacifique Niyongabire: The former A-League Men winger thriving in Canada". Front Page Football.
12. "Rowdies Acquire Winger Pacifique Niyongabire". Tampa Bay Rowdies . 12 January 2024.
13. Jacques, John (12 January 2024). "Tampa Bay Signs Valour Forward Niyongabire". Northern Tribune.
14. Jacques, John (19 December 2022). "Valour Adds A-League Forward Pacifique Niyongabire". Northern Tribune.
15. Jacques, John (19 March 2023). "Niyongabire Nets Burundi Call Up". Northern Tribune.
16. "Skor Sementara Indonesia Vs Burundi FIFA Matchday 2023, Gawang Timnas Dibobol Pacifique Niyongabire" [Provisional score for Indonesia vs Burundi FIFA Matchday 2023, Pacifique Niyongabire's goal was broken by the national team]. Tribun Network (in Indonesian). 25 March 2023.
17. Tait, Ed (6 April 2023). "Pacifique Niyongabire: "I feel like I'm quite fast and I like to create things – whether it's coming inside or trying to dribble on the wing."". Valour FC .
18. Jacques, John (12 June 2023). "On Song In CPL, Niyongabire Gets Burundi Nod". Northern Tribune.
19. Migliaccio, Val (17 April 2020). "Adelaide United's Pacifique Niyongabire and Melbourne Victory's Elvis Kamsoba's mother is stranded in Burundi". The West Australian .
20. Pacifique Niyongabire at Soccerway
21. "Pacifique Niyongabire NPL Stats". MyGameDay.

External links

• Pacifique Niyongabire at Soccerway
• Pacifique Niyongabire at FootballDatabase.eu
• Pacifique Niyongabire at Valour FC