Sipho Sibiya Riopel (born July 28, 1971), also known as Siphos Sibya, is a retired South African-Canadian soccer player who is an assistant coach with the

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March ...

women's team.

Player

Youth

In 1991, Sibiya, at the time known as Sipho Riopel, played a single season for

Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It became the Seat ...

Professional

In 1994, Sibiya began his professional career with the

Vancouver 86ers Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...

of the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

. He played four seasons in Vancouver. In 1998, he played a single season with the Montreal Impact of the

USISL A-League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

. In December 1998, he tore his

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus (h ...

playing indoor soccer. The injury kept him from playing outdoors in 1999. In 1996, Sibiya began playing winter indoor soccer with the expansion Edmonton Drillers of the National Professional Soccer League. Sibiya played all four plus seasons of the team's existence. The Drillers began the 2000–2001 season, but folded after nine games. On December 4, 2001, the

Milwaukee Wave The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, m ...

selected Subiya in the first round of the dispersal draft. He played three seasons with the Wave. On August 38, 2003, the Wave traded Sibiya and future considerations to the Cleveland Force for

Giuliano Oliviero Giuliano Oliviero (born February 26, 1974) is a Canadian former soccer midfielder and currently the head coach of the Milwaukee Wave in the Major Arena Soccer League. Outdoor career Club He first began to play professional soccer with the Edmo ...

. The Force then traded Sibiya and D.J. Newsom to the St. Louis Steamers for Ato Leone. In June 2004, Sibiya was again part of a complicated three team trade. The Steamers traded Siphiya to the Milwaukee Wave for

Joe Reiniger Joe Reiniger (born December 7, 1970 in Collinsville, Illinois) is a professional soccer player and coach. He grew up in Caseyville. Reiniger has played forward for the St. Louis Ambush, Milwaukee Wave, and the St. Louis Steamers. He went to ...

. The Wave then traded Siphiya, Gary DePalma and future considerations to the Cleveland Force in exchange for Lee Edgerton. While this was taking place, Sibiya was playing for the

Edmonton Aviators The Edmonton Aviators were a soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The club was founded in 2003 as a member of the United Soccer League's A-League and folded after playing only one season in 2004. Midway through the season, with the clu ...

of the

USL A-League The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

. On March 29, 2005, the Force traded Sibiya and Joel John Bailey to 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 t ...

for Neil Gilbert and Allen Eller. On March 21, 2007, Sibiya signed with the Winnipeg Alliance of the

Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League The Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League or CMISL was a professional indoor soccer league that began full league play in January 2008. The league's president was Mel Kowalchuk. As the league has become affiliated with the Professional Arena Socce ...

. In 2008, Sibiya became a player-coach for the

Saskatoon Accelerators Saskatoon Accelerators were a professional soccer team based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan that played in the Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League. The team played indoor soccer which is different from the official FIFA indoor game called futsal. I ...

of the

Professional Arena Soccer League A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

. In 2009, he became a player-coach with the

Prince George Fury The Prince George Fury were a Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League The Canadian Major Indoor Soccer League or CMISL was a professional indoor soccer league that began full league play in January 2008. The league's president was Mel Kowalchuk. A ...

of the Professional Arena Soccer League.Prince George Fury
/ref>

National team

Sibiya played for the

Canada national beach soccer team The Canada national beach soccer team represents Canada in international beach soccer competitions and is controlled by the Canadian Soccer Association, the governing body for soccer in Canada. Current squad As of 13 February 2017 ...

which went to the quarterfinals of the

2006 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup The 2006 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was the second edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, governed by FIFA. Overall, this was the 12th edition of a world cup in beach soccer since the establishment of the ''Beach Soccer World Championship ...

Coach

Sibiya has held numerous coaching positions, including assistant coach to the 2006

and head coach of the

and

. He is an assistant coach with the Vancouver Whitecaps women's team. From September 2009 to November 2011, he served as Technical Director for the Guildford Athletic Club in

Surrey, British Columbia Surrey is a city in British Columbia, Canada. It is located south of the Fraser River on the Canada–United States border. It is a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver regional district and metropolitan area. Mainly a suburban city, Surr ...

References

External links

Sipho Sibiya on-air interview from 1997
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sibiya, Sipho Living people 1971 births Sportspeople from Pretoria American Professional Soccer League players Baltimore Blast (2001–2008 MISL) players Black Canadian soccer players Canadian beach soccer players Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Canadian soccer players Cleveland Force (2002–2005 MISL) players Edmonton Drillers (1996–2000) players Edmonton Aviators / F.C. players Expatriate soccer players in Canada Expatriate soccer players in the United States Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players Milwaukee Wave players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Montreal Impact (1992–2011) players Seattle Pacific Falcons men's soccer players South African emigrants to Canada South African expatriate sportspeople in Canada South African soccer players St. Louis Steamers (1998–2006) players Vancouver Whitecaps (1986–2010) players Winnipeg Alliance players Canadian soccer coaches Association football forwards Canadian men's futsal players Player-coaches Association football midfielders