Background
Ogunbiyi was born in Rochester, New York to Lai, a pharmacologist from Nigeria, and Elaine Ogunbiyi, a biochemist from Jamaica.
- Photos
- Works
- Photos
- Works
Babajide Ogunbiyi
Edit ProfileEducation
Ogunbiyi attended Santa Clara University. During his time with the Broncos, he also played as a forward and scored 11 goals in 77 total appearances with the team He played the Broncos" West Coast Conference championship-winning teams in 2006 and 2007.
Career
While at high school he played basketball as a forward as well as soccer as a defender. In soccer he lettered three years and was team captain in his senior year. College Club Ogunbiyi was drafted by the New York Red Bulls in the 2009 Master of Library Science SuperDraft.
When he was drafted, New York officials cited his size - six foot, four inches and 212 pounds - as a potential asset.
After refusing a developmental contract he and the club were unable agree to a deal. He chose to continue his senior year at college.
In April 2009 Ogunbiyi had an unsuccessful trial with English club Leeds United, later trialing with Oldham Athletic in July 2009. In 2010, Ogunbiyi signed for Viborg FF of the Danish 1st Division.
Babajide was spotted by Viborg great Steffen Højer while he was on trial with Odense Boldklub in a match against Football Club Fredericia.
Højer was impressed by Babajide and offered him a trial with Viborg, this resulted in the defender signing his first professional contract with the club in August 2010. In June 2011 Babajide went on a three-day trial with German club Karlsruher South Carolina, however the clubs were unable to agree on a transfer fee and he returned to Viborg. In two and a half seasons with Viborg Babajide appeared in 53 matches for the team in total, 52 league and one cup, scoring six goals.
He had his best season for Viborg during the 2010-2011 campaign in which he managed to score 5 goals in 28 league matches for the Danish side and was named as the clubs player of the year.
He was also named in the 1st Division team of the year for the 2010-2011 season. While in Denmark, Ogunbiyi wrote a regular column for Goal.com focusing on his observations of living in Denmark as a foreigner.
On July 31, 2012 it was announced that Ogunbiyi signed a contract for the New York Red Bulls following a trial with the club However on August 17, 2012 it was announced that he would be released for health reasons.
After playing in the Danish 1st Division with Vendsyssel FF for the latter part of the 2012-2013 season, Ogunbiyi was re-acquired by Viborg in advance of the 2013-2014 season.
On 12 December 2015 Viborg FF announced that they would not prolong Ogunbiyi"s contract and he would leave the club at the end of the year. He signed an 18-month deal with Danish Superliga club Hobro IK on January 4, 2016. International Being born in Rochester, New York in the United States and having a Nigerian father, he was eligible for the United States and Nigeria.
Although Ogunbiyi has been part of the Nigerian national team youth setup since 2001 and senior national team since 2008 he has never appeared in a match for Nigeria at any level
