Almir Barbosa (born June 2, 1980) is a

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

Career

College and amateur

Born in

, Barbosa spent his early childhood in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, before moving to

Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county. Quincy is part of the Greater Boston area as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in ...

, in the United States aged 15. He played for the Massachusetts-based Cape Verdean ethnic Fidjus Terra, Alianca CV, and Clube Tabanka, and played

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

at the University of South Carolina Spartanburg, where he was a National Soccer Coaches Athletic Association All-American in 2000 and received All-Conference honors in 2003.

Professional

Barbosa turned professional in 2004 and began his career in the

USL Second Division The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...

, then moved to Sweden, playing for

Kristianstads FF Kristianstad FC is a Swedish football club located in Kristianstad. The club was formed in 2015 through a merger between Kristianstads FF and Kristianstad BoIS. The club is currently playing in Division 2, the fourth tier of Swedish football. H ...

, before returning to the United States when he signed for the

New Hampshire Phantoms The Seacoast United Phantoms (formerly the New Hampshire Phantoms) are an American association football, soccer team based in Epping, New Hampshire. The team was originally based in Manchester, New Hampshire, before moving to Portsmouth, New Ha ...

in the

in 2006. Barbosa was named to the USL Division 2 All-League First Team and tied for second in the league in scoring with 10 goals in his debut season with the Phantoms. Barbosa moved to the

Harrisburg City Islanders Harrisburg City Islanders, known as Penn FC in their final season, were an American professional soccer team based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 2003, the team most recently played in the USL Pro, the second tier of the ...

in 2008 making 16 appearances, following the Phantoms' relegation to the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

, and spent one year in Pennsylvania before signing for the

Western Mass Pioneers Western Mass Pioneers is an American soccer team based in Ludlow, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1998, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid. The team plays its home games at Lusitano Stadium ...

in 2009. He played 19 games and scored 9 goals for the Pioneers in USL-2 in 2009. Barbosa was named to the USL Division 2 All-League Team but was released at the end of the year when the Pioneers also self-relegated to the PDL. Barbosa also had the honor of being selected as one of USL's Division 2 players of the decade. Having been unable to secure a professional contract elsewhere, Barbosa returned to play for the

in the

in 2010.

References

External links

Pioneers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barbosa, Almir 1980 births Living people Footballers from Praia Cape Verdean men's footballers Men's association football forwards Penn FC players Seacoast United Phantoms players USL Second Division players Western Mass Pioneers players USL League Two players Cape Verdean emigrants to the United States Cape Verdean expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden Cape Verdean expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Rhode Island Stingrays players USC Upstate Spartans men's soccer players