Edward Kwame Ababio (born January 1, 1988) is a Ghanaian-American retired

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player. Ababio is a coach with

Tampa Bay United Tampa Bay United Soccer Club is a soccer club from Tampa, Florida that plays in the Southeast Division in USL League Two. History The club was founded as a youth soccer club in Tampa, Florida, where they are the largest youth team in the city. ...

, a youth organization supported by the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...

. Ababio previously coached with Florida Hawks FC, a youth program based in

Lithia, Florida Lithia is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb of Tampa, Florida, Tampa. The ZIP codes are 33547, 33596, and the area code is Area code 813, 813. It is part of the census-d ...

Career

College and Amateur

Born in

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, Ghana, Ababio lived for several years in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

where he played for HC United and

Gaither High School Gaither High School is a public high school located in the Northdale area of Hillsborough County, Florida. It opened in 1984 and is located on 16200 North Dale Mabry Highway. Bloomingdale High School, located in Valrico, Florida, was built around ...

before joining the US Under-17 national team residency at the

IMG Soccer Academy IMG Academy is a preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. IMG Academy is set across over 600 acres and features programs consisting of sport camps for youth athletes, adult camps, a board ...

in Bradenton, Florida. He played for the

UNC Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the ''Tar Heel ...

in college where he featured regularly almost throughout his time at the school (he was medically redshirted after making three appearances in the 2009 season). During his college years Ababio also played with

Carolina Dynamo North Carolina Fusion U-23, formerly known as Carolina Dynamo, is an American soccer team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1993, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The ...

in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syste ...

, and was on the roster of the

Bradenton Academics IMG Academy Bradenton is an American soccer team based in Bradenton, Florida, United States. Founded in 1998, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team is associated with IMG Academy and the ...

, but did not feature in any games for the Florida team due to injury.

Professional

Ababio was drafted in the first round (18th overall) of the

2011 MLS SuperDraft The 2011 MLS SuperDraft was the twelfth annual SuperDraft presented by Major League Soccer. It was held on January 13, 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland, during the 2011 NSCAA Convention at the Baltimore Convention Center. The 2011 SuperDraft consiste ...

by the

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

. He signed with the Rapids on April 14, 2011. Ababio made his professional debut in a group stage match on September 28, 2011, in the

2011–12 CONCACAF Champions League The 2011–12 CONCACAF Champions League is the 4th edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its current format, and overall the 47th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North ...

, scoring in his debut against Isidro Metapán of El Salvador. Ababio was waived by Colorado on June 28, 2012.

References

External links

* 1988 births Living people Soccer players from Tampa, Florida American expatriate soccer players North Carolina Tar Heels men's soccer players IMG Academy Bradenton players North Carolina Fusion U23 players Colorado Rapids players Tampa Bay Rowdies players North Carolina FC players C.D. Águila footballers Gaither High School alumni Expatriate footballers in El Salvador USL League Two players National Premier Soccer League players Major League Soccer players North American Soccer League players United States men's youth international soccer players Colorado Rapids draft picks American men's soccer players Tampa Marauders players Association football defenders Ghanaian emigrants to the United States USL League Two coaches {{US-footy-defender-stub