Rui Carlos Pinho da Vitória (Portuguese pronunciation:[ˈʁujviˈtɔɾjɐ]; born 16 April 1970) is a Portuguese football manager and a former player who played as a midfielder.
As a manager, he most notably spent three and a half years with Benfica in Portugal, winning seven major trophies, which included two consecutive Primeira Liga titles, before subsequently having periods in charge at Al Nassr, Spartak Moscow and the Egyptian national team.
A midfielder, Vitória retired as a player in 2003, aged 32.[4]
Managerial career
Early years and Fátima
After starting as a manager with his main team Vilafranquense, Vitória moved in 2004 to Benfica, spending two seasons with its junior side.[4]
In 2006, Vitória signed for Fátima, helping the club promote to the second level in his first season, followed by immediate relegation back. In 2008–09, again as champion, he again led the side to division two.[4]
Vitória started the 2016–17 season by winning his first Portuguese Super Cup on his third attempt, with a 3–0 win over Braga; therefore, he succeeded in winning all four major trophies in Portugal.[13] On 23 October 2016, he surpassed Jimmy Hagan's 43-year-old record of 15 consecutive away wins in the league, achieving the 16th as Benfica defeated Belenenses 2–0 away.[14] Later, on 7 April 2017, he renewed his contract for a further two seasons[15] before ending the season with victories in Primeira Liga, Taça de Portugal and Supertaça, therefore, clinching Benfica's second treble in history after Lajos Baróti's in 1980–81. In addition to that, by winning two of four league titles in a row, Vitória became the first Benfica manager to reach the tetra.
On 4 January 2019, following a string of bad results during the 2018–19 season, resulting in Benfica's first-ever loss to Portimonense,[19] Vitória's contract was terminated by the club.[20]
On 27 December 2020, Vitória left the club by mutual consent. At the time of his departure, Al-Nassr were 15th in the table with 8 points from 10 matches.[25]
Vitória's record at the club was mixed. He had won their Europa League group ahead of Leiceister City and Napoli, for which he gained popularity amongst the fans. In fact, Spartak beat Napoli both home and away around time when Napoli was first in Serie A. However, the Russian giants were 9th in the league, with a low note being a 7–1 loss to FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.[28] Vitória's contract with Spartak was terminated by mutual agreement on 15 December 2021.
Egypt
On 12 July 2022, Vitória became the manager of the Egyptian national team, signing on a four-year contract.[29] On 4 February 2024, he was sacked from his position following the elimination from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations round of 16, without recording any victory during the tournament.[30]
^"Comunicado" [Announcement] (PDF). CMVM. 4 January 2019.
^"Rui Vitória confirmado no Al Nassr" [Rui Vitória confirmed at Al Nassr]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). 10 January 2019. Retrieved 14 February 2019.