Olivier Hakim Boumelaha (born 27 May 1981, in Mulhouse) is a French former
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
striker of Algerian descent. He last played for
FC Gossau
FC Gossau is a Swiss football club from the city of Gossau in the canton of St. Gallen. It currently plays in the Challenge League, the second-highest level of Swiss football.
History
After its foundation in 1906, FC Gossau spent the first 65 ...
in the
Swiss Challenge League
The Challenge League is the second-highest tier of the Swiss football league system and lower of two professional leagues in the country. Ten teams play in the Challenge League; the winners of the league are promoted to the Super League, while the ...
. He is the older brother of
Virgile Boumelaha
Virgile Boumelaha (born 6 August 1983 in Mulhouse) is a French association footballer of Algerian descent; he plays for FC Grenchen.
Career
Boumelaha began his career with FC Saint-Louis, he moved then to FC Basel and later to FC Sochaux-Mo ...
and
Sabri Boumelaha.
Career
Boumelaha began his career with
FC Basel
Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel, FCB, or just Basel, is a Swiss football club based in Basel, in the Canton of Basel-Stadt. Formed in 1893, the club has been Swiss national champions 20 times, Swiss Cup winners 13 times, and ...
in 1998 but made only one appearance for the club before moving on to
FC St. Gallen
Fussballclub St. Gallen 1879, commonly known as St. Gallen, is a Swiss professional football club based in the city of St. Gallen, Canton of St. Gallen. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the Swiss Super League.
History
Founde ...
in 2000. He failed to break into the first team there, also, and after a short spell at
Etoile Carouge FC, he signed for
FC La Chaux-de-Fonds
FC La Chaux-de-Fonds is a Swiss football club based in La Chaux-de-Fonds. It was founded in 1894 and used to play at the Stade Charrière.
History
F.C. La Chaux-de-Fonds was founded on July 4, 1894, and won the Swiss first division in the ...
where he played 14 games over the course of the 2004/05 season. He then moved to the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
with
Al-Ittihad Al-Ittihad (Arabic: الاتحاد "The Union"), sometimes transliterated as Al-Etihad or Al-Ettihad may refer to:
Sports Football Libya
*Al-Ittihad Club (Tripoli), a football club based in Bab Ben Gashier
* Al Ittihad Gheryan, a football club bas ...
in July 2004 where he scored seven goals in just 15 appearances. This caught the eye of many European clubs and
IFK Mariehamn
IFK Mariehamn is an Ålandic football club based in Mariehamn, the capital of the Åland Islands. It plays in the Finnish Premier Division (''Veikkausliiga''). The club is managed by Daniel Norrmén, and it plays its home matches at Wiklö ...
of the
Finnish Veikkausliiga acquired his services the next season. He scored twice in five matches there, but never broke into the starting XI and dropped down to the
Ykkönen
''Ykkönen'' (Finnish for 'Number One'; sv, Ettan) is the second highest level of the Finnish football league system (after the Veikkausliiga), although it is the highest league managed by the Football Association of Finland. The teams also play ...
(Finland's second division) with
Tampereen Peli-Pojat -70 in 2006. He scored goals despite a relatively low number of appearances at PP-70 but returned to the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
during the Summer of 2007, this time with
Al Ahli of
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
. After just one season with ''The Eagles'', he made his way back to
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
with
FC Gossau
FC Gossau is a Swiss football club from the city of Gossau in the canton of St. Gallen. It currently plays in the Challenge League, the second-highest level of Swiss football.
History
After its foundation in 1906, FC Gossau spent the first 65 ...
of the
Challenge League, he left on 18 December 2008 Gossau and will go to
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
.
References
External links
Stats at Swiss Football League*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boumelaha, Olivier
1981 births
Living people
French footballers
Swiss Super League players
Swiss Challenge League players
Veikkausliiga players
French people of Kabyle descent
Association football forwards
FC Gossau players
FC Basel players
FC St. Gallen players
IFK Mariehamn players
Expatriate footballers in Bahrain
French expatriate sportspeople in Bahrain
Footballers from Mulhouse
French expatriate footballers
French expatriate sportspeople in Finland
Expatriate footballers in Finland
Expatriate footballers in the United Arab Emirates
French expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates
French expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Expatriate footballers in Switzerland
Al-Ittihad Kalba SC players
UAE Pro League players