Pacifique Niyongabire

Pacifique Niyongabire (born 15 March 2000) is a Burundian professional footballer who plays as a winger for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the USL Championship and the Burundi national football team.

Early life
Niyongabire was born in Burundi, and spent his early childhood in Tanzania, before migrating to Australia with his family at age seven. In Australia, he played youth football with the Playford City Patriots and Gawler, before joining Adelaide United at age 17.

Club career
Niyongabire was initially given a scholarship to the Adelaide United Football Schools, after being discovered by the club. He began playing for the Adelaide United NPL team in the second-tier NPL South Australia. On 14 January 2018, he was called up to the Adelaide United first team in the A-League Men, making his professional debut against Sydney. In March 2018, he signed a two-and-a-half year scholarship contract with the first team. On 30 July 2020, he scored his first A-League goal against Perth Glory. In June 2021, he departed the club, upon the expiry of his contract.

In August 2021, he signed with Perth Glory in the A-League Men, following a successful pre-season trial. In December 2022, he terminated his contract by mutual consent with the club to pursue another playing opportunity.

In December 2022, he signed with Canadian Premier League club Valour FC for the 2023 season. Niyongabire made his debut for Valour FC on 16 April 2023 against York United, recording an assist in the match. He scored his first goal for the club on 20 May 2023 against Pacific FC.

In January 2024, he joined USL Championship club Tampa Bay Rowdies for an undisclosed fee.

International career
On 16 November 2022, he made his debut for the Burundi national football team in a friendly against Ivory Coast.

On 19 November, he scored in a 1–0 victory in an unofficial friendly against Guinea U23.

On 25 March 2023, he scored his first goal for the national team in a friendly match against Indonesia in a 3–1 loss (his previous goal was considered unofficial, as the match was not against a senior national team).

In June 2023, he was called up for his first official tournament match ahead of a 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match.

Personal life
He is the younger brother of Elvis Kamsoba, who is also a professional footballer who also plays on the Burundi national football team.