Nikola Paunic

Nikola Paunic
Paunic captaining TFC Academy in 2012
Personal information
Full name Nikola Paunić
Date of birth (1993-10-13) October 13, 1993
Place of birth Podgorica, FR Yugoslavia
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
2003–2009 Serbian White Eagles
2012 Toronto FC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2012 Toronto Varsity Blues 22 (1)
2013–2014 South Florida Bulls 40 (1)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2011 Serbian White Eagles 4 (0)
2014 K-W United 8 (0)
2015 Orange County Blues 4 (0)
International career
2012 Canada U20 4 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Nikola Paunic (born October 13, 1993) is a Canadian former soccer player.

University career

Paunic played two years of college soccer at the University of Toronto.[1]

In 2013, he transferred to the University of South Florida.[2][3] In his debut season with the Bulls, he was named twice as the American Conference's defensive player of the week.[4] He also helped South Florida win the American Conference title by defeating the University of Connecticut in a penalty shootout.[5]

In his second season, he was named the conference's defensive player of the week in October.[6] Once the season concluded, he was named to the conference all-tournament team.[7]

Club career

Early career

Paunic played his youth career with the Serbian White Eagles and would play with both the team's senior and reserve teams in the Canadian Soccer League.[8] In 2011, while playing with Serbia's reserve team in the league's second division, he was nominated for the defender of the year award.[9] In 2012, he joined TFC Academy's senior team in the league's first division, where he was named team captain.[2] Paunic helped the academy side secure a playoff berth.[10] Once the season concluded, he was nominated for both the defender and rookie of the year award.[11]

Paunic was selected to represent Toronto FC in the 2013 Dallas Cup.[12] He played in the tournament, where he appeared in a match against Tigres UANL.[13] He also played with Toronto FC's reserve team in the MLS Reserve League.[14][15]

Paunic also appeared for USL PDL side K-W United FC in 2014.[16][17] In his debut season in the PDL circuit, he helped the team secure a postseason berth by finishing second in their division.[18] Their playoff journey ended in the first round after a defeat by Des Moines Menace in a penalty shootout.[19]

Orange County

On January 20, 2015, Paunic was selected 74th overall in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by Vancouver Whitecaps FC.[20][21] After he wasn't signed by Vancouver, he joined United Soccer League side Orange County Blues on June 2, 2015.[22][23] The club would secure a playoff berth by clinching its conference title.[24]

International career

In 2012, Paunic was called to a camp for the Canada men's national under-20 soccer team in Florida.[25] Several months later, he was selected to represent the Canada U20 team in the Marbella Cup.[26][27]

Managerial career

Paunic became a coach for the Stella Rossa Football Club Academy in the Ontario Academy Soccer League.[28]

Personal life

Following his retirement from competitive soccer, he transitioned into the culinary realm by operating a family-run restaurant that serves Serbian cuisine.[29]

Honors

Orange County Blues

South Florida Bulls

References

  1. ^ "Nikola Paunic - Men's Soccer - University of Toronto Athletics". www.varsityblues.ca. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  2. ^ a b Vujcic, Djuradj (2 September 2013). "Paunic joins NCAA's University of South Florida Bulls". RedNation Online. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Nikola Paunic - Men's Soccer - USF Athletics". gousfbulls.com. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  4. ^ Johnston, Joey (12 September 2013). "Future schedules take shape". The Tampa Tribune.
  5. ^ a b "Huskies Fall 6-5 in Penalty Kicks". Hartford Courant. 18 November 2013. pp. C3.
  6. ^ "Miami announces a 10-person hall class". Port Charlotte Sun. 7 October 2014.
  7. ^ "USF men fall in AAC final to Tulsa". The Tampa Tribune. 17 November 2014. p. 11.
  8. ^ Adamson, Stan (6 December 2018). "Where Are They Now…….CSL players moving up". Canadian Soccer League. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  9. ^ "Sports briefs - Turnbull nominated". Brantford Expositor. 10 November 2011. pp. B1.
  10. ^ "Toronto Croatia kicks off CSL title defence Oct. 14 at Centennial Stadium". Etobicoke Guardian. 11 October 2012.
  11. ^ Rowaan, David (21 February 2019). "Toronto FC Academy well represented in CSL award nominations". Waking The Red. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  12. ^ Rowaan, David. "Toronto FC Prepares for Dallas Cup". Waking The Red. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  13. ^ Rowaan, David. "Toronto FC hold their own at Dallas Cup". Waking The Red. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  14. ^ Bankes, Dave (23 June 2012). "Reserves Leave It Late In Draw | Toronto FC". torontofc. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  15. ^ "Nikola Paunic | SoccerStats.us". soccerstats.us. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  16. ^ http://www.uslpdl.com/home/808431.html
  17. ^ "2014 Stats | uslleaguetwo.com". www.uslleaguetwo.com. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  18. ^ Bryson, Mark (23 July 2014). "KW United FC hits the road looking to tame a Menace: We're deep enough as a squad that we have the opportunity to be successful in Des Moines.United head coach Stuart Neely". Waterloo Region Record. pp. C10.
  19. ^ Brown, Josh (30 July 2014). "United FC shooting a little bit higher". Waterloo Region Record. pp. E3.
  20. ^ "Vancouver Whitecaps FC select five players in final two rounds of 2015 MLS SuperDraft | Vancouver Whitecaps FC". Archived from the original on 2015-01-21.
  21. ^ Kingston, Gary (21 January 2015). "Whitecaps nab SFU senior in SuperDraft". The Vancouver Sun. pp. C13.
  22. ^ http://www.uslsoccer.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=32800&ATCLID=210125658
  23. ^ "Blues Sign Paunic, Add Depth To Defense". USL Championship. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 14 August 2025.
  24. ^ a b Brannick, Chris (4 October 2015). "Konig leads Energy into playoffs". The Daily Oklahoman. pp. B13.
  25. ^ Rowaan, David. "Canada's Mens U20 hold camp in Florida". Waking The Red. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  26. ^ Weber, Marc (10 October 2012). "Canada's U20 men beat U.S. at Marbella Cup". The Province.
  27. ^ Fletcher, Duncan. "Canada releases Under 20 squad for Marbella Cup". Waking The Red. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  28. ^ "FC Stella Rossa - Our Coaches". www.stellarossafc.com. Archived from the original on 4 April 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  29. ^ Doss, Suresh (17 January 2019). "You can find the 'Serbian grill queen' of Toronto at Bonimi". CBC News. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
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