Kapeli Pifeleti (born September 1, 1999) is a

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player who plays as a hooker and

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

for Saracens in

Premiership Rugby Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

and the United States national team. Born in

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

, Pifeleti has also represented the United States with the

USA Selects The USA Falcons, formerly known as the USA Selects, is the second national rugby team for the United States, usually used for uncapped matches and domestic club sides. The primary national team is known as the USA Eagles or the United States natio ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

with the England national under-18 team.

Club career

Saracens Academy

Pifeleti played for Saracens F.C. in 2017 and 2018, making appearances with the Saracens Storm and Saracens Under-18 sides.

San Diego Legion

In late 2018, it was announced that Pifeleti would play for the San Diego Legion during Major League Rugby's 2019 season. Pifeleti made his debut for the Legion on January 27, 2019, appearing as a substitute and playing at prop, in a 25–23 defeat to

Rugby United New York Rugby New York, formerly known as Rugby United New York and now officially nicknamed the Ironworkers, are a professional rugby union team based in New York City that is a member of Major League Rugby (MLR). The team played an exhibition season in ...

. Pifeleti made his first start for the Legion on February 9, 2019, playing at hooker, in a 17–13 victory over

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

International career

England under-18 team

Pifeleti was named to the roster for the England national under-18 team in 2018.

USA Selects

Having lived several years in San Francisco while growing up, Pifeleti was eligible to play for the USA. Pifeleti was named to the roster for the USA Selects ahead of the 2018 Americas Pacific Challenge. However, he did not make an appearance for the team during the competition.

USA Eagles

Pifeleti made his debut for the USA Eagles on February 23, 2019, appearing as a substitute, in the Eagles' 33–28 victory over

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

during the

2019 Americas Rugby Championship The 2019 Americas Rugby Championship is the fourth series of the Americas Rugby Championship, the top level rugby union competition for Americas nations. Participants Table Fixtures The tournament was played in a round-robin format, with ...

. Pifeleti qualified to represent the United States by meeting

World Rugby World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...

's residency requirement.

Personal life

Pifeleti has an older brother,

Fakaʻosi Pifeleti Fakaʻosi Pifeleti (born 19 October 1996) is a United States rugby union player, currently playing for the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR) and the United States national team. His preferred position is prop. Professional career P ...

, who also plays rugby as a prop for the San Diego Legion. Their father, ʻOtenili Pifeleti, played rugby for the Tonga national and Samoa national teams, and served as captain of the former during the 1980s.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pifeleti, Kapeli 1999 births Living people United States international rugby union players Rugby union hookers Rugby union props Tongan rugby union players San Diego Legion players Saracens F.C. players Expatriate rugby union players in England Tongan expatriate rugby union players