Lucio Ianiero (born 13 December 1966) is a Canadian

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

coach and former player who is the head coach of Niagara 1812. He played in the

Canadian Soccer League The Canadian Soccer League (CSL; ) is a semi-professional league for Canadian soccer clubs primarily located in the province of Ontario, and claims the history of the Canadian National Soccer League (CNSL). It is a non-FIFA league previously ...

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. ...

Canadian National Soccer League The National Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada that existed from 1926 to 1997. Teams were primarily based in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The league was renamed to Canadian National Soccer League in 1993 following the folding ...

, National Professional Soccer League, and the Canadian Professional Soccer League.

Club career

Ianiero played for the Hamilton Steelers in the original

and was the league's 12th best scorer in 1988 with 9 goals. In 1992, he joined the

London Lasers The London Lasers were a professional soccer team in London, Ontario, Canada that played in the original Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992), Canadian Soccer League in 1990 and 1992. History The London Lasers were founded in 1990 as an expans ...

. After the demise of the CSL he played in the

for the

Toronto Blizzard Toronto Blizzard may refer to: *Toronto Blizzard (1971–1984), the original soccer club, a franchise of the North American Soccer League *Toronto Blizzard (1986–1993), the later club and franchise of the Canadian Soccer League *Toronto Azzurri B ...

in 1993, and featured in 23 matches. When the Blizzards folded he signed with Toronto Rockets in 1994, and featured in seven matches and recorded one goal. He also played indoor soccer for the

Toronto Shooting Stars Toronto Shooting Stars were an indoor soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario that competed in the defunct NPSL. The team began play in the 1996–1997 season, with home games taking place at Maple Leaf Gardens. However, the ownership of the fra ...

of the National Professional Soccer League, where he appeared in 17 matches and recorded five goals.

International career

Ianiero participated in the

1985 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1985 FIFA World Youth Championship was the fifth edition FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA World Youth Championship, was held in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 24 August to 7 September 1985. The tournament took place in ten venues within eight host citie ...

and the inaugural 1989 Futsal World Cup in the Netherlands. He made his senior debut for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in an August 1986

Merlion Cup The Merlion Cup is an invitational association football, football tournament that was held in Singapore annually from 1982–1986, in 1992, 2009 and 2019 and 2023. Participants included full national sides, Olympic sides, Invitational XI's and ...

match against

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

and went on to earn 17 caps.

Coaching career

Ianiero served as an assistant coach for St. Catharines Roma Wolves in 1997. In 2000, he was named Canadian Professional Soccer League Coach of the Year, as head coach of the St. Catharines Wolves. In 2001, he helped lead the Wolves to the league title. He was the team's player-coach from at least 2000 to 2006. On 12 August 2015

Brock University Brock University is a public university, public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada's Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. The ...

appointed Ianiero head coach for the men's soccer team. In 2024, he was named the head coach of Niagara 1812 for both the men's team in the

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The league is officially affiliated to the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) and has automatic qualification for the U.S. Open Cup. ...

and the women's team in the

Women's Premier Soccer League The Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) is an amateur women's soccer league in the United States. History The WPSL is the longest-running active women's soccer league as it enters its 25th season in 2023. The WPSL is also the largest women ...

Retirement

Ianeiro was a high school teacher at St. Catharines Collegiate Institute and Vocational School. In 2018, he was inducted into the

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

Soccer Hall of Fame.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ianiero, Lucio 1966 births Living people Soccer players from Toronto Canadian sportspeople of Italian descent Men's association football midfielders Canadian men's soccer players Canada men's international soccer players Canadian men's futsal players Hamilton Steelers (1981–1992) players London Lasers players Toronto Blizzard (1986–1993) players Toronto Rockets (soccer) players St. Catharines Roma Wolves players Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992) players American Professional Soccer League players Canadian Soccer League (1998–present) players Canada men's youth international soccer players Toronto Shooting Stars players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Canadian soccer coaches Canadian Soccer League (1998–present) coaches Canadian National Soccer League players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen