Stojan "Niki" Nikolic (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, t ...

: Cтojaн Николић – Hики, born 13 September 1949) is a retired Yugoslav-American soccer defender who played professionally in Yugoslavia and the United States, including the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

and Major Indoor Soccer League. He also coached in the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

and American Professional Soccer League.

Player

Born in

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...

SR Serbia , life_span = 1944–1992 , status = Constituent state of Yugoslavia , p1 = Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia , flag_p1 = Flag of German Reich (1935–1945).svg , p2 ...

, SFR Yugoslavia, Nikolic played for his home town club

FK Radnički Niš Fudbalski klub Radnički (), commonly known as Radnički Niš ( sr-cyr, Раднички Ниш), is a professional football club based in ok Niš, Serbia. Its name means ''Labourers'' in Serbian and stems from the relationship with the Labour ...

since 1975.Stats from Yugoslav League
at

B92 RTV B92, or simply B92 (stylized as b92, formerly BΞ92 and B 92), is a Serbian news station and broadcaster with national coverage headquartered in Belgrade. Founded in 1989 as radio station, it was a rare outlet for Western news and informati ...

In 1978, he moved to the United States where he played for the

Tulsa Roughnecks Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...

in the

. At the end of the season, he returned to Radnički Niš for the winter season. In 1979, he moved back to the United States, this time permanently when he signed with the

Philadelphia Fury The Philadelphia Fury was an American soccer team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that last competed in the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA). The club formerly competed in the American Soccer League and is currently owned by ...

. He played the 1979 season and began the 1980 season with the Fury before being traded to the San Jose Earthquakes. In addition to playing for the Fury, Nikolic also spent the 1979–1980 Major Indoor Soccer League season with the St. Louis Steamers. In the fall of 1980, he moved indoors permanently when he signed with the Philadelphia Fever. After two seasons, he joined the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with ...

for one season, the Kansas City Comets for another season and the Blast once again in 1985–1986

Coach

In 1986, the Kansas City Comets hired Stojan as an assistant coach, a position he held until 1988. In September 1988, he became the head coach of the

Hershey Impact The Hershey Impact was an indoor soccer club based in Hershey, Pennsylvania that competed in the National Professional Soccer League. The team played its home games at the Hersheypark Arena for all of its 3 seasons. Staff and ownership * Presi ...

of the

. On May 25, 1990, Nikolic replaced

John Ellinger John Ellinger (born October 4, 1951) is a former American soccer coach of the Under-17 United States men's national soccer team, and former head coach of Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer. Ellinger played collegiately at Frostburg State Un ...

as the head coach of the

Washington Diplomats The Washington Diplomats were an American soccer club representing Washington, D.C. Throughout their playing existence, the club played their home games at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium and indoor soccer, indoor home matches at the neigh ...

of the American Professional Soccer League. He also continued to coach the Impact until that team folded in 1992. Currently coaches several youth soccer teams under the name "Super Nova" out of Hershey, Pennsylvania.

References

External links

MISL/NASL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nikolic, Niki Living people 1949 births Footballers from Niš American soccer coaches National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) coaches American Professional Soccer League coaches Baltimore Blast (1980–1992) players FK Radnički Niš players Kansas City Comets (original MISL) players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Philadelphia Fever (MISL) players Philadelphia Fury (1978–1980) players San Jose Earthquakes (1974–1988) players St. Louis Steamers (original MISL) players Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984) players Yugoslav First League players Serbian men's footballers Yugoslav men's footballers Yugoslav expatriate men's footballers Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in the United States Yugoslav emigrants to the United States North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Men's association football defenders