UJ soccer star signs with American club
AUCKLAND PARK – UJ footballer selected as the 28th pick in the first round of the 2022 MLS SuperDraft.
The University of Johannesburg (UJ) will be waving goodbye to another one of their sports stars, following the signing of Katlego ‘Tsiki’ Ntsabeleng by Major League Soccer (MLS) side FC Dallas. It was announced on January 12 that the club had secured the services of UJ’s 23- year-old Daveyton-born footballer after an impressive showing in the 2021 campaign at Oregon State University.
River Ntsabeleng, Tsiki’s father, expressed his immense pride at the success of his son. “I do not have words to describe the feeling. I thank God for the blessing. I have never missed a UJ football match which my son played in Gauteng and I was present at every game he played in Johannesburg. I only watched on TV when he was playing in faraway provinces. I have supported and trained him since he was nine years old.”
Ntsabeleng was selected as the 28th pick in the first round of the 2022 MLS SuperDraft via a trade with New York City FC. Prior to this, he honed his skills at UJ when he was enrolled for a sport management qualification. He played for UJ in local leagues and the FNB Varsity Football tournament, before playing for the South African U20 national team, Mamelodi Sundowns’ reserve team and Kaizer Chiefs’ second team in the Multichoice Diski Challenge.
His success in the USA came as a result of his impressive exploits in the South African U20 national squad. Ntsabeleng’s talent impressed Kyle Timm when the young national team competed in the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) Cup in Zambia in 2018. Timm recruited Ntsabeleng to join Coastal Carolina University (CCU) in the USA. He was part of the SA U20 and Chiefs MDC teams that won the Multichoice Diski Shield and Cosafa Championship in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
Tsiki’s father urged local professional teams to encourage their young players to pursue their education post matric as his son did. Ntsabeleng received a full scholarship at CCU in 2018. That is where he finished his degree and while he was studying at CCU, he was injured. While nursing his injury and looking for a team, he registered for a Master’s degree (2020–2021) at Oregon State University which then helped him overcome his injury woes. He and UJ look forward to seeing what Tsiki will bring to his new club and professional football league.
