Moïse Bombito

Moïse Bombito Lumpungu (born March 30, 2000) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a centre-back for Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids and the Canada national team.

Early life
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Bombito is of Congolese descent. He played youth soccer with CS St-Laurent, where he originally played as a forward. When he was 18, he declined an opportunity to join CS St-Hubert in the semi-professional Première ligue de soccer du Québec, choosing to remain with St-Laurent in the amateur Ligue de soccer élite du Québec, as he was set for a bench role if he joined St-Hubert.

College career
Bombito originally attended Collège Ahuntsic and played for their men's soccer team.

After attending a combine hosted by António Ribeiro and Frederico Moojen, he began attending junior college in the United States, joining Iowa Western Community College. He played two seasons, finishing as national runner-up in the 2021 spring season, following it up with a national championship in the fall 2021 season. He earned 2021 All-American accolades, was named the ICCAC Tournament MVP, and was selected to the ICCAC All-Tournament Team and the ICCAC All-Region First Team.

In 2022, he transferred to the University of New Hampshire to play for the men's soccer team at the NCAA Division I level. On September 10, 2022, Bombito made his collegiate debut and also scored his first goal against the FIU Panthers. That season, he was named the team MVP, the ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, the America East Defender of the Year, was named to the All-ECAC First Team and All-America East First Team, and a Second Team All-American. He was also a MAC Hermann Trophy Semifinalist, was invited to play in the MLS College Showcase, and became the first UNH player to be selected to the Generation Adidas class. During his sole season with the school, he scored four goals, including two game winners.

Club career
In 2020, Bombito began playing with CS St-Hubert in the Première ligue de soccer du Québec, where he converted to centre-back.

In 2022, Bombito played for the Seacoast United Phantoms in the USL League Two, helping them win the Northeast Division title and being named to the USL League Two Team of the Year.

Ahead of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft, Bombito was named to the Generation Adidas class of players, allowing him to enter the draft as an underclassman, as well signing a guaranteed contract. At the draft, he was selected in the first round (3rd overall) by the Colorado Rapids. He became the first player from the University of New Hampshire to be selected in the first round of the draft. After being an unused substitute in the opening match of the season, he suffered a knee injury in training causing him to miss the next few weeks of action. On May 7, he returned to action, debuting with the second team Colorado Rapids 2 in MLS Next Pro against LA Galaxy II. He made his Major League Soccer debut on May 13. On May 24, he made his first start for the Rapids, in a U.S. Open Cup match against Real Salt Lake. On March 30, 2024, he scored his first MLS goal in a 3-2 victory over Los Angeles FC, on his 24th birthday.

International career
In June 2023, Bombito was named to the Canadian national team for the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League Finals, as an injury replacement for Derek Cornelius. He became the second-fastest Generation Adidas player to earn a national team call-up (171 days after the draft), behind only national team teammate Cyle Larin. He was then subsequently named to the 23-man squad for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Bombito made his debut in the opening match of the tournament on June 27 against Guadeloupe.

In June 2024, Bombito was named to Canada's squad for the 2024 Copa América.

Honours
Individual
 * MLS All-Star: 2024