José Antonio Camacho Alfaro (; born 8 June 1955) is a Spanish former football

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

. He spent 15 professional years at Real Madrid, appearing in more than 500 official matches with the team and helping win 19 major titles, including nine

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

championships. Subsequently, he embarked in a lengthy manager career, which included two very brief spells with his main club. Camacho earned more than 80

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

with

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, representing the country in two

World Cups A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

and as many European Championships. He also managed the national team for four years, taking them to the quarter-finals in the

2002 World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...

Club career

Camacho was born in

Cieza, Murcia Cieza () is a town and municipality in Spain, in the autonomous community of Murcia. It is the capital of the Vega Alta ''comarca'', an old form of provincial subdivision). Its current population consisted of 34,889 inhabitants in the year 2018. ...

. After playing youth football at

Albacete Balompié Albacete Balompié is a Spanish football team based in Albacete, in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. Founded on 2 August 1940, it currently plays in Segunda División, the second tier of Spanish football, holding home matches ...

he moved to

giants Real Madrid at age 18, being almost immediately cast into the first team and its starting XI, his debut being handed by manager Luis Molowny on 3 March 1974 as he played the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 away loss against CD Málaga. During his spell with Real Madrid, Camacho appeared in nearly 600 official matches (414 in the league alone), forming a proficient left-wing partnership with

Rafael Gordillo Rafael Gordillo Vázquez (born 24 February 1957) is a Spanish retired footballer. A tremendously attacking left wing-back, equally at ease as defender and midfielder and with a good effort rate, he had an unmistakable style of playing with his ...

, who featured mainly as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. In January 1978 he suffered a serious injury in training, which put his career on hold for nearly two years, but returned strong, being instrumental as the capital side won consecutive UEFA Cups.Biography at Real Madrid Fans
(in Spanish)

International career

Camacho played 81 games for the Spain national team, making his first appearance just 19 years old. His debut came on 5 February 1975 in a 1–1 draw against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

for the

UEFA Euro 1976 The 1976 UEFA European Football Championship final tournament was held in Yugoslavia. This was the fifth UEFA European Championship, held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. The final tournament took place between 16 and 20 June 1976. Only f ...

qualifiers, in

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

. For the following 13 years, Camacho was a defensive mainstay for the national side, being selected – and always as first-choice – to the 1982 and

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal enter ...

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

s, as well as Euro 1984 and

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

. After the 2–0 group stage loss to

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

in the latter competition, he retired from the international scene aged 33.

Coaching career

Beginnings

Following his retirement as a player in 1989, Camacho began coaching, first in Real Madrid's coaching staff. His first professional experiences were spent at

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Li ...

and

RCD Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league s ...

, both of which he helped promote to the top division. In the summer of 1998, Camacho took over Real Madrid's first team, but left after only 22 days over disagreements with the club's management.

Spain national team

Camacho succeeded

Javier Clemente Javier Clemente Lázaro (; born 12 March 1950) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Forced to retire from playing in his early 20s through injury, he embarked on a coaching career with his first managerial ...

as national team manager in September 1998, after a shock 3–2 loss in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

in a Euro 2000 qualifier. The tide quickly turned under the new boss, who led the side to the final stages where they bowed out to eventual champions

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

in the quarter-finals. Two years later, Camacho's team lost in the same stages to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

, now in the

. Following the controversial defeat he announced his resignation, being replaced by

Iñaki Sáez José Ignacio "Iñaki" Sáez Ruiz (born 23 April 1943) is a Spanish former football player and manager. A defender, he spent the vast majority of his professional career with Athletic Bilbao, which he later also coached in various levels, a ...

Benfica

Camacho returned to club action subsequently, being appointed at

S.L. Benfica Sport Lisboa e Benfica (), commonly known as Benfica, is a professional football club based in Lisbon, Portugal, that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football. Founded on 28 February 1904 as ''Sport Lisboa'', Be ...

from Portugal on 1 December 2002 in the place of sacked

Jesualdo Ferreira Manuel Jesualdo Ferreira (born 24 May 1946) is a Portuguese football manager. He is currently the manager of Zamalek in the Egyptian Premier League. In a managerial career of over forty years, he was in charge of all of his country's Big Thre ...

. Two years later, his team won 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 sea ...

against José Mourinho-led FC Porto in

extra-time Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only ...

, as well as finishing second in the Primeira Liga. A tough tackler in his playing days, Camacho also showed a human side when he cried profusely after

Miklós Fehér Miklós "Miki" Fehér (; 20 July 1979 – 25 January 2004) was a Hungarian professional footballer who played as a striker. He spent most of his nine-year career in Portugal, representing four clubs and amassing Primeira Liga totals of 80 ga ...

died on the pitch, shortly after entering Benfica's match at

Vitória de Guimarães Vitoria or Vitória may refer to : People * Francisco de Vitoria (c. 1483–1546), a Spanish Renaissance theologian * Alberto Vitoria (1956–2010), Spanish footballer * Rui Vitória (born 1970), Portuguese retired footballer * Steven Vitória ...

Real Madrid and Benfica return

For the 2004–05 season, Camacho returned to Real Madrid on a two-year contract as a replacement to sacked

Carlos Queiroz Carlos Manuel Brito Leal de Queiroz (; born 1 March 1953) is a Portuguese football coach who currently is the head coach of the Iran national team. He has served as the manager of his native Portugal's national team, the United Arab Emirat ...

. However, things quickly went wrong again in his second spell after a 3–0 defeat at

Bayer Leverkusen Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, t ...

in the group stage of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...

, and a 1–0 league loss at Espanyol four days later also in September; shortly after, he resigned and was replaced by assistant

Mariano García Remón Mariano García Remón (born 30 September 1950) is a Spanish retired football player and coach. A former goalkeeper, he is best known for his spell at Real Madrid, which he helped to six La Liga and three Copa del Rey trophies. He subsequentl ...

. Following Fernando Santos' mutual agreement termination of contract with Benfica, after a 1–1 away draw with

Leixões S.C. Leixões Sport Club, commonly known as Leixões (), is a Portuguese sports club from Matosinhos. It is organised into several departments for many sports, such as football, boxing, karate, volleyball, swimming and billiards. It is most well kno ...

in 2007–08 Portuguese League's opener, Camacho returned to Benfica. However, following a poor string of results, and claiming he was no longer able to motivate the team, he announced he would leave the club minutes after drawing a home match against bottom-placed

U.D. 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. ...

on 9 March 2008.

Osasuna

After working as co-commentator on Spanish TV network

Cuatro Cuatro is Spanish (and other Romance languages) for the number four. Cuatro may also refer to: * Cuatro (instrument), name for two distinct Latin American instruments, one from Puerto Rico (see Cuatro) and the other from Venezuela (see Cuatro) ...

during Spain's victorious

Euro 2008 The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of Europea ...

campaign (he would also work for the channel during the

2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

, which ended with the national team's triumph as well), Camacho replaced

José Ángel Ziganda José Ángel 'Cuco' Ziganda Lakunza (born 1 October 1966) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a centre-forward. He is the current manager of SD Huesca. He played 381 La Liga matches over the course of 12 seasons (111 g ...

at the helm of

CA Osasuna Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club in Pamplona, Navarre. Founded on 24 October 1920, the club currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at the 23,576-capacity El S ...

on 13 October 2008. On 14 February 2011, following a 1–0 away loss against Real Sociedad that placed the

Navarrese Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

inside the relegation zone, Camacho was fired. They eventually finished in ninth position.

China national team

On 13 August 2011, Camacho took over the reins of the Chinese national team, signing a three-year deal for a reported annual salary of

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

8 million. The

Chinese Football Association The Chinese Football Association (CFA) is the governing body for association football, beach soccer and futsal in People's Republic of China (Mainland China). The CFA organizes the men's and women's national teams and administers the country ...

head Wei Di explained the decision as being part of a long-term plan to help the country catch up with Japan and South Korea, while Chinese Soccer Administrative Centre vice-president Yu Hongchen said that Camacho would keep his job even if he did not qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.Jose Antonio Camacho's appointment is part of a long-term revival plan: China Football Association head Wei Di

Goal A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ...

, 15 August 2011 China failed to qualify for the World Cup, after only finishing third in the

third qualifying round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

with three wins and three losses. Camacho was also in charge as a Chinese young squad lost 8–0 to

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 ...

on 10 September 2012 in a

friendly match 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 ...

, the national team's worst-ever defeat which also meant the drop to an all-time low 109th position in the

FIFA World Rankings The FIFA Men's World Ranking is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football, led by Brazil . The teams of the men's member nations of FIFA, football's world governing body, are ranked based on their game results with the ...

. In the first game of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification campaign, Camacho and China lost 1–2 against

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. Following a 5–1 shock friendly loss to

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

on 15 June 2013, he was relieved of his duties. One reason cited for Camacho's shortcomings in Asia was the limitation of football boots. The Chinese FA ordered that all the national team players were to wear Adidas, whilst most players in the

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional association ...

wore

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

, thus creating discomfort.

Gabon national team

Camacho was appointed as

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the nort ...

manager 43 days before the start of the

2017 Africa Cup of Nations The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (abbreviated as AFCON 2017 or CAN 2017), known as the Total 2017 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 31st edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football champions ...

which was to take place in that country, replacing

Jorge Costa Jorge Paulo Costa Almeida (born 14 October 1971) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a central defender, currently manager of Académico de Viseu. Nicknamed ''Bicho'' (animal) and ''Tanque'' (tank) by his colleagues and fans for ...

. The team exited in the group stage, with three draws. Camacho was relieved of his duties on 12 September 2018, due to poor results.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

Real Madrid *

: 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89 *

Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...

: 1973–74, 1974–75, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1988–89 * Supercopa de España:

, 1989 * Copa de la Liga:

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

: 1984–85, 1985–86 Spain *

UEFA European Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations ( UEFA). The competition is conte ...

runner-up:

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

Manager

Benfica *

: 2003–04

References

External links

* *
Real Madrid biography
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Camacho, Jose Antonio 1955 births Living people People from Cieza, Murcia Footballers from the Region of Murcia Spanish footballers Association football defenders Albacete Balompié players Real Madrid Castilla footballers Real Madrid CF players La Liga players Tercera División players UEFA Cup winning players Spain youth international footballers Spain amateur international footballers Spain international footballers 1982 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 1984 players 1986 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 1988 players Spanish football managers Rayo Vallecano managers RCD Espanyol managers Sevilla FC managers Real Madrid CF managers CA Osasuna managers S.L. Benfica managers La Liga managers Segunda División managers Primeira Liga managers Spain national football team managers China national football team managers Gabon national football team managers UEFA Euro 2000 managers 2002 FIFA World Cup managers 2017 Africa Cup of Nations managers Spanish expatriate football managers Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Spanish expatriate sportspeople in China Expatriate football managers in Portugal Expatriate football managers in China Expatriate football managers in Gabon Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Gabon