Helton da Silva Arruda (born 18 May 1978), known simply as Helton, is a Brazilian former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting ...

. After starting out at

Vasco da Gama Vasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira (; ; c. 1460s – 24 December 1524), was a Portuguese explorer and the first European to reach India by sea. His initial voyage to India by way of Cape of Good Hope (1497–1499) was the first to link ...

he went on to spend his professional career in Portugal, representing

União de Leiria União Desportiva de Leiria, commonly known as União de Leiria (), is a Portuguese football club based in Leiria, central Portugal. Founded on 6 June 1966, it currently plays in the Campeonato de Portugal, holding home matches at Estádio Dr. M ...

and

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropo ...

and winning 18 major titles for the latter club. Over 14 seasons, he appeared in 299

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal ...

games. Helton appeared for

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

at the

2007 Copa América The 2007 Campeonato Sudamericano Copa América, known simply as the 2007 Copa América or 2007 Copa América Venezuela, was the 42nd edition of the Copa América, the South-American championship for international association football teams. The c ...

Club career

Vasco

Born in

São Gonçalo, Rio de Janeiro São Gonçalo () is a municipality located in the States of Brazil, Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro. It is on northeastern Guanabara Bay in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area. It is the 16th most populous city in Bra ...

, Helton emerged through

CR Vasco da Gama Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (), commonly referred as Vasco da Gama or simply Vasco, is a professional sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Originally a rowing club, Vasco is mostly known for its football team, who it currently compet ...

's youth system. He first attracted attention after winning the Série A and the Copa Mercosur with the club in 2000.

União de Leiria

In 2002, Helton's contract with Vasco expired and he signed with Portuguese club U.D. Leiria in January of the following year. He made his official debut on 9 March 2003 in a 3–1 home win against Académica de Coimbra for the

Taça de Portugal The Taça de Portugal (; "Cup of Portugal") is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Placard since the 2015–16 seas ...

, and backed up Paulo Costinha in his first season. At the end of the 2004–05 campaign, after being first-choice in his last two years, Helton signed with

FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, MHIH, OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Por ...

Porto

It seemed that Helton was destined to spend a long time bench-warming, as Porto legend

Vítor Baía Vítor Manuel Martins Baía, OIH (; born 15 October 1969) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper. One of the most decorated goalkeepers of all time, his career was intimately connected with FC Porto, which he started re ...

barred his way into the first team. However, he got his chance sooner than expected when Dutch coach Co Adriaanse summarily dropped Baía after a mistake against

C.F. Estrela da Amadora Club Football Estrela da Amadora (), sometimes just Estrela, is a Portuguese sports club (predominantly football) based in Amadora, northwest of Lisbon. It's the successor of Clube de Futebol Estrela da Amadora, founded in 1932 and extinct in ...

cost the team a goal and a 1–2 away defeat, on 15 January 2006. After initial criticism, Helton gained the number one spot with several solid performances. He celebrated his first season at the club with the domestic

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

(

and cup). Helton continued to be an undisputed starter for Porto in the following years, as Porto won four consecutive league championships. In 2008–09's Portuguese Cup, however, he stayed on the bench as

Nuno Espírito Santo Nuno Herlander Simões Espírito Santo (born 25 January 1974), often referred to as simply Nuno, is a Portuguese football manager and former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently the manager of Saudi Professional League club Al ...

was the starter for the eventual winners. Helton was again first-choice in the following two seasons, appearing in a combined 49 league games as his team won six major titles. On 18 May 2011 he celebrated his 33rd birthday by keeping a

clean sheet In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

, in a 1–0 win against fellow league side S.C. Braga; following the departure of Lucho González for

Olympique de Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; oc, Olimpic de Marselha, ), also known simply as Marseille or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional men's football club based in Marseille, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Founded in 1899, the club p ...

in summer 2009, he was also appointed

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

. Helton played 30 league matches in the 2012–13 campaign, for his seventh league conquest. On 16 March 2014, however, the 35-year-old suffered an

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

injury to his right leg during a 0–1 loss at

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional fo ...

, being sidelined for several months. On 17 February 2014, Helton was condemned to pay a €60,000 fine for assaulting two stewards at the

Estádio da Luz The Estádio da Luz (), officially named Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, is a multi-purpose stadium located in Lisbon, Portugal. It is used mostly for association football matches, hosting the home games of Portuguese club S.L. Benfica, its ...

, following a tunnel brawl during the 0–1 away league loss against S.L. Benfica on 20 December 2009. After returning to action he played second-fiddle, to both Fabiano and

Iker Casillas Iker Casillas Fernández (; born 20 May 1981) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper and currently works as a football commentator. Popularly dubbed "''San Iker''" ("Saint Iker") for his ability to produce specta ...

. After terminating his contract on 12 October 2016 at the age of 38, Helton announced his retirement the following year, but returned shortly after to play as a forward for the veteran side of amateurs SC Canidelo. He started his coaching career in January 2018, being appointed at Portuguese third division club S.C. Freamunde. Helton came out of retirement in October 2020, returning to União Leiria who now competed in the third tier.

International career

After competing at the

1997 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, known as the 1997 FIFA/Coca-Cola World Youth Championship for sponsorship purposes, was the 11th staging of the FIFA World Youth Championship. It was held from 16 June to 5 July 1997 in Malaysia. It was t ...

, Helton was a member of the Brazilian team at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

. He appeared in all four matches, before the nation was eliminated in the quarter-finals by

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west- central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...

. Helton received his first callup to the full side in October 2006, starting in an unofficial

exhibition game An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

against

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the no ...

club

Al Kuwait Kaifan Kuwait Sporting Club ( ar, نادي الكويت الرياضي) is a Kuwaiti professional football club based in Kuwait City. The football team has won Kuwaiti Premier League 17 times. Kuwait SC also has over 50 trophies in Kuwaiti Club fo ...

on 7 October 2006. His official debut came on 15 November of the same year when he started in a friendly with Switzerland, and he was also featured against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

in June 2007, in what was the first international to be played at the new

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

. Helton was a member of the national squad who won the

, but did not make one single appearance in the tournament as he was second choice to A.S. Roma's Doni.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Vasco da Gama *

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian"), and also known as Brasileirão Assaí due to sponsorship with Assaí Atacadista, is a Br ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

Campeonato Carioca The Campeonato Carioca (Carioca Championship), officially known as Campeonato Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (Port., Rio de Janeiro State Championship), was started in 1906 and is the annual football championship in the state of Rio de Janeiro, B ...

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

* Copa Mercosur:

Taça Guanabara The Taça Guanabara, or Guanabara Cup, is a football tournament organized annually since 1965 by the Rio de Janeiro State Football Federation. In its first four editions (1965, 1966, 1967 and 1968), the Taça Guanabara was a tournament in its o ...

* Taça Rio:

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanistan ...

Porto *

: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13 *

: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11 *

Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira The Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (; English: Cândido de Oliveira Super Cup, or simply Portuguese Super Cup) is an annual Portuguese football match played since 1979 between the winners of the Portuguese League (Primeira Liga) and Portuguese ...

: 2006,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, 2011,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

: 2010–11 Brazil *

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...

Individual * Primeira Liga Goalkeeper of the Year: 2010–11, 2012–13

References

External links

Porto official profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Helton 1978 births Living people People from São Gonçalo, Rio de Janeiro Sportspeople from Rio de Janeiro (state) Brazilian footballers Association football goalkeepers Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players CR Vasco da Gama players Primeira Liga players Campeonato de Portugal (league) players U.D. Leiria players FC Porto players UEFA Europa League winning players Brazil youth international footballers Brazil under-20 international footballers Brazil international footballers 2007 Copa América players Copa América-winning players Olympic footballers of Brazil Footballers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Brazilian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Portugal Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Brazilian football managers S.C. Freamunde managers Brazilian expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Portugal