[1] He spent his early life in Tongaat (now oThongathi), a town near Durban, before moving to Johannesburg as a teenager to play soccer in a junior development team.

He moved to the United States in 2001 as an exchange student, joining a host family in Louisville, Kentucky.

[2][4][5][6] At UAB he was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman Team in 2005, earned second-team all-conference accolades as a sophomore in 2006, first team all-region and all-conference accolades in 2007 after redshirting his junior season when visa troubles kept him from returning to the United States after a visit to South Africa.

[2] During his college years Gumede played with the Panama City Pirates in the USL Premier Development League.

[9][10][11] Having trained with Major League Soccer club D.C. United during the early part of 2010[12] Gumede was expected to be a prominent pick at the 2010 MLS SuperDraft, but was not selected by any team, due to an injury.