Rio Ave Futebol Clube, commonly known as Rio Ave (), is a Portuguese professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in Vila do Conde, that competes in the

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, ...

. The club is named after the Ave River, which flows through the town and into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. Founded in 1939, they play their home matches at Estádio do Rio Ave, also known as the Estádio dos Arcos. Built in 1985, the current stadium seats approximately 12,815 people. The club's home colours are green and white striped shirts with white shorts and socks, while their away kit consists of a red and white striped shirt and white shorts with yellow socks. Portuguese internationals

Alfredo Alfredo (, ) is a cognate of the Anglo-Saxon name Alfred and a common Italian, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish language personal name. People with the given name include: *Alfredo (born 1946), Brazilian footballer born as Alfredo Mostarda Filho ...

Paulinho Santos João Paulo Maio dos Santos (born 21 November 1970), commonly known as Paulinho Santos, is a Portuguese former footballer who played mainly as a defensive midfielder. He spent 11 years of his professional career with Porto, playing in several ...

, Quim,

Rui Jorge Rui Jorge de Sousa Dias Macedo de Oliveira (born 27 March 1973), known as Rui Jorge, is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a left-back, currently manager of the Portugal national under-21 team. In a 15-year professional career he ...

and

Fábio Coentrão Fábio Alexandre da Silva Coentrão (; born 11 March 1988) is a Portuguese former professional footballer. Mainly a left-back, he also operated as a winger and occasionally as a defensive midfielder. After starting playing professionally with ...

started their careers at the club. Goalkeepers

Jan Oblak Jan Oblak (born 7 January 1993) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and captains the Slovenia national team. He is frequently ranked as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. Ob ...

and Ederson are some famous talents that were part of this side. The ''Vilacondenses''' best top-tier league finish was fifth in the 1981–82, 2017–18 and 2019–20 seasons. They reached the

1984 Taça de Portugal Final 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 Southeast A ...

, where they lost to

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 metropol ...

4–1, and the

2014 Taça de Portugal Final The 2014 Taça de Portugal Final was the final match of the 2013–14 Taça de Portugal, the 74th season of the Taça de Portugal, the premier Portuguese football cup competition organized by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). The final too ...

, where they lost to Benfica 1–0. With this result, Rio Ave qualified for the

2014–15 UEFA Europa League The 2014–15 UEFA Europa League was the 44th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the sixth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. The 2015 UEFA Europa League Final was ...

, their first participation in a major

European competition The European Competition is a student competition in which students of all ages submit creative, artistic, or written pieces of work on the activities of the European Union. Tendered by European Movement Germany, it is the oldest student competition ...

History

Rio Ave was founded in 1939, soon being nicknamed ''Rio Grande'' (Big River). The side had two of its best moments in the 1980s, under the management of

Félix Mourinho José Manuel Mourinho Félix (12 February 1938 – 25 June 2017), known as Félix Mourinho, was a Portuguese football goalkeeper and manager. Playing career Mourinho was born in Ferragudo, Faro District, Algarve. He played 19 seasons as a prof ...

, father of

José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...

: in 1981–82, the club finished in a joint-best fifth place, and two years later it reached the Taça de Portugal

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 cont ...

, losing to

4–1. In 2013–14, the club reached both cup finals under the management of

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- ...

, but lost to

treble Treble may refer to: In music: *Treble (sound), tones of high frequency or range, the counterpart of bass *Treble voice, a choirboy or choirgirl singing in the soprano range *Treble (musical group), a three-piece girl group from the Netherlands *T ...

-winners Benfica in both. This qualified them to their first European campaign, the

. New manager Pedro Martins led them past Swedish duo IFK Göteborg and

IF Elfsborg Idrottsföreningen Elfsborg, more commonly known as IF Elfsborg or simply Elfsborg (), is a professional football club based in Borås, Sweden, and is affiliated to the Västergötlands Fotbollförbund. They play in the Allsvenskan and have spent ...

to reach the group stage, where they came last. Under Miguel Cardoso, Rio Ave came fifth in 2017–18, equalling their best finish. Two years later, with

Carlos Carvalhal Carlos Augusto Soares da Costa Faria Carvalhal (; born 4 December 1965) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a centre-back, currently manager of La Liga club RC Celta de Vigo. As a player, he totalled 197 Primeira Liga appearances in ...

in charge and Iranian

Mehdi Taremi Mehdi Taremi ( fa, مهدی طارمی; born 18 July 1992) is an Iranian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Primeira Liga club Porto and the Iran national team. A late bloomer, he begun his career at Shahin Bushehr and Iranjav ...

the league's joint top scorer, the club equalled this position with a new points record of 55. In October 2020, the team reached the Europa League playoffs but lost at home to A.C. Milan, having conceded a penalty equaliser in the last minute of extra time and then losing 9–8 on penalties. The season, under the returning Cardoso, ended with relegation after a 5–0 aggregate defeat to

F.C. Arouca Futebol Clube de Arouca () is a football club based in Arouca, Porto Metropolitan Area, Portugal. Founded in 1951, the club plays in the Primeira Liga, holding home games at Estádio Municipal de Arouca, with a 5,000-seat capacity. History Founde ...

in the playoffs.

European record

;Notes * 3Q: Third qualifying round * PO: Play-off round * GS: Group stage

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Honours

National competitions

* Taça de Portugal ** Runners-up (2): 1983–84, 2013–14 *

Taça da Liga The Taça da Liga (), known outside Portugal as Portuguese League Cup, is an annual football club competition organised by the Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional (LPFP) for teams competing in the Primeira Liga and LigaPro, the top two tier ...

** Runners-up (1): 2013–14 * Supertaça de Portugal ** Runners-up (1):

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

* Segunda Divisão / Liga Portugal 2 ** Winners (4): 1985–86, 1995–96, 2002–03, 2021–22 * Terceira Divisão ** Winners (1): 1976–77

Regional competitions

* AF Porto Cup ** Winners (1): 1966–67

Personnel honours

SJPF Player of the Month The SJPF Player of the Month (often called Portuguese League Player of the Month) is an association football award that recognizes the best Primeira Liga, Portuguese League player each month of the season and is conceived by the SJPF (syndicate of ...

** Evandro – December 2003 ** João Tomás –

November 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; Protests ...

, November 2010 *

SJPF Young Player of the Month The SJPF Young Player of the Month (often called Portuguese League Young Player of the Month) is an association football award that recognizes the best Portuguese League young player each month of the season and is conceived by the SJPF (syndicat ...

** Miguel Lopes – October 2008, November 2008 ** Yazalde – February 2009 ** Fábio Faria –

December 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; Protests ...

Vítor Gomes Vítor Hugo Gomes da Silva (born 25 December 1987), known as Gomes, is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Rio Ave as a defensive midfielder. He achieved Primeira Liga totals of 246 games and 15 goals over 12 seasons, for Rio ...

– October 2011

Coaching staff

Coaching history

Artur Quaresma Artur da Silva Quaresma (27 June 1917 – 2 December 2011) was a Portuguese footballer who played as a forward. Club career Born in Barreiro, Setúbal District, Quaresma started playing with local F.C. Barreirense in the second division. In the ...

(1976–78) * Pedro Gomes (1978–79) *

Fernando Cabrita Fernando da Silva Cabrita (1 May 1923 – 22 September 2014) was a Portuguese football forward and manager. He amassed Primeira Liga totals of 295 games and 88 goals over the course of 14 seasons, in representation of Olhanense and Sporting da ...

(1979–81) *

(1981–82) * Pedro Gomes (1982–83) *

(1983–85) * Mário Reis (1985–86) *

Abel Braga Abel Carlos da Silva Braga (born 1 September 1952), known as Abel Braga, is a Brazilian former football coach and player. He played as a central defender during a professional career that started with Fluminense in 1968. He earned one cap fo ...

(1986) * António Morais (1986–87) *

Mário Juliato Mário Juliato (born May 21, 1944) is a Brazilian former football player and coach. He started his professional career at Ponte Preta as a center back, but prematurely ended his career because of a seriously injured knee when he was 22. Then he ...

(1987–88) * Mário Reis (1988–89) * Nicolau Vaqueiro (1989) * Eurico Gomes (1989–90) * Mário Reis (1990–91) *

Augusto Inácio Augusto Soares Inácio (born 30 January 1955) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a left back, and a manager. Having represented both Sporting and Porto as a professional player, he went on to have a lengthy managerial career that ...

(1991–92) * Vieira Nunes (1992) * José Rachão (1992–93) *

Quinito Joaquim Lucas Duro de Jesus (born 6 November 1948), known as Quinito, is a Portuguese former football midfielder and manager. Playing career Born in Setúbal, Quinito played in exactly ten Primeira Liga seasons during his professional career, mak ...

(1993–94) *

Jaime Pacheco Jaime Moreira Pacheco (born 22 July 1958) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a central midfielder, and is a current manager. During his career he played, among others, for Porto and Sporting, amassing Primeira Liga totals of 296 m ...

(1994–95) *

(1995) *

Henrique Calisto Henrique Manuel da Silva Calisto (born 16 October 1953) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a right back, and is a manager. After his playing career ended he became a manager, taking charge of numerous clubs, mainly in Portugal, ...

(1995–96) * Carlos Brito (1 July 1996 – 30 June 2000) *

Vítor Oliveira Vítor Oliveira may refer to: * Vítor Oliveira (footballer, born 1953) Vítor Manuel Oliveira (17 November 195328 November 2020) was a Portuguese Association football, football midfielder and Manager (association football), manager. In a man ...

(1 July 2000 – 7 Nov 2001) *

Horácio Gonçalves Horácio José Paredes Mota Gonçalves (born 25 December 1962) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a forward, currently a manager. Playing career Gonçalves was born in Guimarães. He was a youth player at hometown club Vitória S.C. ...

(13 Nov 2001 – 29 Oct 2002) * Carlos Brito (30 Oct 2002 – 30 June 2005) *

António Sousa António Augusto Gomes de Sousa (; born 28 April 1957) is a Portuguese former football central midfielder and manager. During his career he played, among others, for Porto and Sporting, amassing Primeira Liga totals of 483 matches and 83 go ...

(1 July 2005 – 28 Feb 2006) * João Eusébio (28 Feb 2006 – 5 Jan 2009) * Carlos Brito (6 Jan 2009 – 15 May 2012) *

(1 July 2012 – 19 May 2014) * Pedro Martins (22 May 2014 – 17 May 2016) * Capucho (20 May 2016 – 10 Nov 2016) * Luís Castro (14 Nov 2016 – 12 June 2017) * Miguel Cardoso (12 June 2017 – 12 June 2018) * José Gomes (13 June 2018 – 22 December 2018)

League and cup history

References

External links

*
Zerozero team profileDetailed up-to-date club news
{{Authority control

Rio Ave Rio Ave Futebol Clube, commonly known as Rio Ave (), is a Football in Portugal, Portuguese professional Association football, football club based in Vila do Conde, that competes in the Primeira Liga. The club is named after the Ave River, which ...

Association football clubs established in 1939 1939 establishments in Portugal Primeira Liga clubs Liga Portugal 2 clubs