Daniel Araujo Amaral (born January 4, 1973) is a Canadian former soccer player and current head coach for Portugal AC in the Arena Premier League. As a player he played with various Portuguese clubs, and in the

Canadian National Soccer League The National Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada that existed from 1926 to 1997. Teams were primarily based in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The league was renamed to Canadian National Soccer League in 1993 following the folding ...

until retiring in the Canadian Professional Soccer League. After his retirement from competitive soccer he managed his former club

Portugal FC SC Toronto was a Canadian soccer team, founded in 1994. The team was a member of the Canadian Soccer League, and played its final home games at Lamport Stadium in the city of Toronto, Ontario. The club found success early on since its incepti ...

in 2009 in the Canadian Soccer League.

Playing career

Amaral began his career in 1996 with

Toronto Supra SC Toronto was a Canadian soccer team, founded in 1994. The team was a member of the Canadian Soccer League, and played its final home games at Lamport Stadium in the city of Toronto, Ontario. The club found success early on since its incep ...

of the

. Midway through the season he was signed by

F.C. Famalicão Futebol Clube de Famalicão, commonly known as Famalicão, is a Portuguese association football, football club from Vila Nova de Famalicão. Founded on 21 August 1931, its senior team currently plays in the Primeira Liga, the top tier of Portugu ...

of the Segunda Divisão de Honra. In 1998, he was loaned to

Real Jaén Real Jaén Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Jaén, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1929 it plays in Tercera División RFEF, holding home matches at ''Nuevo Estadio de La Victoria'', with a capacit ...

of the

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

, where he appeared in 35 matches and scored ten goals. He would play for Famalicão for three seasons, and would appear in a total of 80 matches and recorded 34 goals. In 1999, he signed with

Moreirense F.C. Moreirense Futebol Clube is a Portuguese professional football club based in Moreira de Cónegos, Guimarães Municipality, in Minho. Founded on 1 November 1938, it plays in the Liga Portugal 2, holding home games at Parque de Jogos Comendador Joa ...

of the Segunda Liga, where he appeared in eight matches and scored two goals. After the relegation of Moreirense he signed with

U.S.C. Paredes União Sport Clube Paredes is a Portuguese sports club from Paredes. The men's football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normall ...

of the

Portuguese Second Division Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

. In 2001, Amaral signed with

F.C. Vizela Futebol Clube de Vizela is a Portuguese football club based in Vizela, Braga District. Founded in 1939, it currently plays in the Liga Portugal Bwin, holding home games at the Estádio do Futebol Clube de Vizela, with a capacity for 6,100 spect ...

, and appeared in 22 matches and scored nine goals. In 2003, he returned to Canada to sign with his old club the Toronto Supra competing in the Canadian Professional Soccer League. He made his return on May 29, 2003 in a match against

Hamilton Thunder The Hamilton Thunder were a soccer team located in Hamilton, Ontario, playing in the Western Conference of the Canadian Professional Soccer League. The team played its home fixtures at Brian Timmis Stadium until a rent dispute with the city cau ...

, where he recorded his first goal of the season. During the season, he was appointed the team captain, and helped Toronto finish second in the Eastern Conference and secured a playoff berth. In the first round of the postseason he contributed by scoring a goal in a 3-2 defeat to

Vaughan Sun Devils The Glen Shields Sun Devils were a soccer team which played in the Canadian Soccer League, Canadian Professional Soccer League from 1998–2002. They played their home matches in Thornhill, Ontario. The franchise was one of the original teams of ...

. In 2004, Amaral helped the Supra claim their first piece of silverware by clinching the Eastern Conference title, and finished as the league's second highest goalscorer with 15 goals. For his efforts he was awarded the

Canadian Soccer League MVP Award The Canadian Soccer League Awards is an annual awards ceremony for several individual performances at the end of the season. The event was established in 1998, when the Canadian National Soccer League merged with the stillborn Ontario Professional S ...

. After failing to secure a postseason berth in 2005, Amaral took a sabbatical for two seasons and returned for the 2008 season. In 2006, he played in the

Ontario Soccer League The Ontario Soccer League (OSL) is a competitive amateur soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The OSL is affiliated with and governed by the Ontario Soccer Association. According to the OSA, the OSL has Provincial Leagues, Regional Leagues and Multi-J ...

with Brampton Boavista. In 2008, he helped Portugal FC (new franchise name for Toronto Supra) qualify for the postseason, and contributed by scoring a goal in a 2-1 victory over

Toronto Croatia Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor ...

. Unfortunately their playoff run came to an end with a 7-0 defeat to

Trois-Rivières Attak Trois-Rivières Attak was a Canadian soccer team that played three seasons in the Canadian Soccer League. They formally served as a reserve and academy team for the USL First Division side Montreal Impact. The club was an instant success withi ...

Managerial career

In 2009, he announced his retirement and was appointed the new head coach for Portugal FC. Throughout the season he would occasionally play the dual role of player/coach for the club. He managed to clinch the final postseason berth for Portugal FC, but were defeated in the quarterfinals by Trois-Rivieres Attak by a score of 4-0 on goals on aggregate. In 2017, he began managing at the indoor level as a head coach for Portugal AC in the Arena Premier League.

Honours

Toronto Supra * Canadian Professional Soccer League Eastern Conference title:

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

Individual * Canadian Professional Soccer League Most Valuable Player: 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amaral, Danny 1973 births Living people Canadian soccer players Canadian expatriate soccer players Canadian people of Portuguese descent Canadian Soccer League (1998–present) players Canadian soccer coaches F.C. Famalicão players Moreirense F.C. players U.S.C. Paredes players F.C. Vizela players Real Jaén footballers Liga Portugal 2 players SC Toronto coaches SC Toronto players Soccer people from Ontario Canadian National Soccer League players Canadian Soccer League (1998–present) managers Association football forwards