[1] A resident of the Bałuty area of Łódź,[2] he was believed to be one of the greatest prospects of European football, however his struggle with alcohol,[3] gambling[4] and mental health problems[5] prevented him from realising his full potential and is considered to this day one of the biggest unfulfilled talents.
[6][4] An ŁKS Łódź legend,[7][8] regarded as a phenomenal player in both Greece and Sweden aside from his native country,[9] his career highlight is considered to be the 2000–01 and 2001–2002 seasons with Greek club Panathinaikos for whom he scored important Champions League goals in Europe.
[16] Following his spell in Greece, Sypniewski had a short stint with top division side RKS Radomsko, scoring four goals in nine league games,[17] before signing with Wisła Kraków in 2002, who at the time completely dominated Polish football.
Following that game, Sypniewski started struggling with his form and temper, eventually going to such lengths that Malmö terminated his three-year contract after only six months.
[20] He turned up at bottom side Trelleborgs FF in a desperate attempt to save the strugglers from relegation, but Sypniewski was completely out of shape and out of the club following a few matches.
[22] Following a promising start with several goals and with rumours surfacing about interest from higher levels, Sypniewski managed to get into trouble once more, committing drunk driving in Malmö; he was sacked from Bunkeflo as a result and was forced to move back to Poland.
[23] Sypniewski made several attempts at getting back into football, but due to his addiction, he trialled with several clubs other than ŁKS, mostly local lower league teams until he eventually retired altogether.
[6] Sypniewski's semi-autobiography was published in November 2014 with the help of two local Łódź journalists, Żelisław Żyżyński and Paweł Hochstim.
[9] Igor openly talked about his continued suffering from clinical depression, gambling addiction and alcoholism, stating that he frequently binge drank after taking strong anti-psychotic medication.