Jorge Jesus

Jesus, son of Virgolino António de Jesus who played for Sporting CP in the 1940s, was born in Amadora, Lisbon, and finished his football formation with the same club, making his top flight debut with Olhanense on loan from the Lions. He played with Sporting's first team in the 1975–76 season, appearing in 12 matches and starting once as the Lisbon club finished in fifth place. Subsequently, released, he played in the country's top flight in seven of the following eight years, representing Belenenses, Grupo Desportivo Riopele, Juventude de Évora, União de Leiria, Vitória de Setúbal and Farense, amassing totals in the category of 166 games and 14 goals. Jesus retired in 1990 at the age of 36, after spells in the second (mainly with his hometown Estrela da Amadora) and third levels.

Early years

After starting as a manager with lowly Amora, Jesus moved in December 1993 to Felgueiras as a replacement for Rodolfo Reis, helping the club promote to the top flight in his second season and being in and out of the team until January 1998, with Felgueiras back in division two. Subsequently, he led former team Estrela da Amadora to two consecutive eighth-place finishes in the first division and, in quick succession, managed both Vitória de Setúbal and Amadora, celebrating top flight promotions with both even though he was fired by the latter in March 2003. In 2003–04 he helped Vitória de Guimarães narrowly avoid relegation, finishing two points ahead of first relegated team Alverca. In the following four years, always in division one, Jesus was in charge of Moreirense (suffering relegation), União de Leiria and Belenenses, finishing fifth with the latter and qualifying to the UEFA Cup, and adding a presence in the 2007 Portuguese Cup final, losing 0–1 to Sporting. On 20 May 2008, one day after leaving Belenenses, Jesus took over at Braga, leading the Minho side to the fifth position in the league and the round-of-16 in the UEFA Cup. Highlights in the latter competition included a 3–0 home win against Portsmouth and a last-minute 0–1 defeat to Milan at the San Siro. He won the last edition of the UEFA Intertoto Cup, something never achieved by other Portuguese club.

Benfica

2009–2010: First season

On 17 June 2009, Jesus replaced…

Jesus married his second wife, Ivone, and the couple had a son, Mauro. From his previous marriage, he had a daughter Tânia and a son Gonçalo. He is of Brazilian descent through his maternal grandmother, who was born in Recife. He had over €1 million invested in the Banco Privado Português (BPP) when it went bankrupt in 2009. He recovered eighty percent of that amount in March 2014.

Managerial

Braga

UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2008 Benfica

Primeira Liga: 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15 Taça de Portugal: 2013–14 Taça da Liga: 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2014 UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2012–13, 2013–14 Sporting CP

Taça da Liga: 2017–18 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2015 Al Hilal

Saudi Pro League: 2023–24 King's Cup: 2023–24 Saudi Super Cup: 2018, 2023, 2024 Flamengo

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2019 Copa Libertadores: 2019 Supercopa do Brasil: 2020 Recopa Sudamericana: 2020 Campeonato Carioca: 2020 Fenerbahçe

Turkish Cup: 2022–23 Al Nassr

Saudi Pro League: 2025–26

Individual

Primeira Liga Best Coach: 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15 Primeira Liga Manager of the Month: September/October 2020, March 2021, September 2021 Saudi Pro League Manager of the Season: 2023–24, 2025–26 Saudi Pro League Manager of the Month: September 2018, October 2023, November 2023, December 2023, February 2024, March 2024, May 2024, September 2024, September 2025 Cosme Damião Awards – Coach of the Year: 2014 Globos de Ouro Best Portuguese Manager: 2015, 2016 Bola de Prata Best Coach: 2019 Prêmio Craque do Brasileirão Best Coach: 2019

Orders

Knight Commander of the Order of Prince Henry (30 December 2019)