Desiree Ellis OIG (born 14 March 1963) is a South African soccer manager and former player.

Internationally, she represented and was a founding member of the South Africa women's national team, which officially formed in 1993 following SAFA's admission to FIFA in 1992.

At 30 years old, she debuted for South Africa as vice captain of the team's first-ever official match, a 13-0 win against Eswatini (formerly Swaziland).

In April 2023, Ellis was bestowed the National Order of Ikhamanga by the South African Government for her contributions to soccer.

[10] During the 1995 World Cup qualifiers, South Africa beat Zimbabwe, Zambia and Angola on aggregate, 10–1, 11–5 and 6–4 but lost to Nigeria 11–2.

[10] When South Africa hosted the 2000 African Women's Championship, she captained the side to a runner-up finish.

In 2000, Ellis was nominated alongside Mercy Akide and Florence Omagbemi for African Woman Footballer of the Year.

[13] Ellis was appointed head coach in February 2018[14] and coached the team, then ranked 50th in the world, to a second-place finish in the Africa Women Cup of Nations, losing to 11-time champions Nigeria on penalty kicks in the final; nonetheless, by finishing second, South Africa qualified to its first-ever FIFA Women's World Cup in 2019.

[22] In December 2023, she won the CAF Women's Coach of the Year award for the 4th time, for her team's efforts at the 2023 World Cup.