Lusitano De Évora
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Lusitano Ginásio Clube, MHC, also commonly known as Lusitano de Évora (abbrev. Lusit. Évora), is a Portuguese
sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...
based in
Évora Évora ( , ), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal City of Évora (), is a city and a municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of . It is the historic capital of the Alentejo reg ...
competing in the
Liga 3 (Portugal) The Liga 3 is the third-level football league in the Portuguese football league system, starting in 2021–22. It is a semiprofessional national league organized by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). The creation of this league is part o ...
, the third tier league in the Portuguese football system. Founded on 11 November 1911 by a group of high school and commercial school youngsters in the house of professor Dâmaso Simões at Rua das Fontes, No. 3 in Évora as ''Lusitano Académico'', it subsequently became ''Lusitano Futebol'' and finally Lusitano Ginásio Clube in 1925. The club's home ground is the Campo Estrela in Évora, purchased in 1931. Lusitano entered the
1952–53 Primeira Divisão Statistics of Portuguese Liga in the 1952–53 season. Overview It was contested by 14 teams, and Sporting Clube de Portugal won the championship. League standings Results References {{DEFAULTSORT:1952-53 Primeira Divisao Primeira Li ...
, finishing up 7th in their first season ever. The club competed for 14 consecutive seasons in the
Primeira Divisão The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga P ...
, its major period of success in the 1950s and 1960s, earning an honorable 5th place in 1956/57, and reaching the semi-finals of the
Taça de Portugal The Taça de 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 Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...
twice. After relegation in 1966 the club went through a period of decline, never regaining access to the Portuguese top flight ever again and even descending to regional championships. The club is still today in the top teams with the most presences in the Portuguese League and the 14th with more consecutive presences.


History

The name "Lusitano" is derived from ''
Lusitania Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province encompassing most of modern-day Portugal (south of the Douro River) and a large portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and Province of Salamanca). Romans named the region after th ...
'', the
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
name for the Roman province corresponding to the current territory of Portugal south of the Douro river plus the modern-day Spanish region of Extremadura, and it is a generally accepted synonym of Portuguese. The
Lusitanians The Lusitanians were an Indo-European languages, Indo-European-speaking people living in the far west of the Iberian Peninsula, in present-day central Portugal and Extremadura and Castilla y Leon of Spain. It is uncertain whether the Lusitanians ...
(Lusitanos in Portuguese language) was the people of Lusitania.


Motto

The club's motto is ''Fazer Forte Fraca Gente'' (Portuguese for ''Making the Weak Stronger'').


Foundation

The club was founded 11 November 1911 (''11-11-1911'' in a sport played with 11 players). In addition, its first headquarters was in Travessa da Bola No. 11, in Évora.


Anthem

The club's anthem was composed by poet Celestino David in 1926 ''Camaradas da luta e do sonho'' ''Companheiros no mesmo ideal'' ''Entoemos um canto risonho'' ''Que levante, a cantar, Portugal'' ''Exaltemos a força que dá'' ''A alegria, a saúde, o valor...'' ''Pois com eles um dia virá'' ''Outra vida, outro sol, outro amor'' ''Sem intuitos de guerras e lida'' ''Em batalhas que o ódio revela'' ''Recordemos as forças e a vida'' ''Num anseio de vidas mais belas''


First victories

In 1917/18 Lusitano won its first Evora FA championship. It would win many district championships afterwards (1921/22, 1922/23, 1926/27, 1927/28, 1928/29. 1930/31, 1932/33, 1933/34, 1934/35, 1939/40, 1940/41). The year 1925 proved decisive for the future of the club. At the initiative of historical leaders such as José Benchimol, Napoleão Palma, Alberto da Conceição and António Prazeres, the club was restructured, the facilities were reorganized and its action extended to other modalities, with emphasis on gymnastics that would reach great projection. Lusitano started investing on a concept of full personal development, involving the man and the athlete, a design that would be the hallmark of all those who have passed through their teams over the years. Between 1929/30 and 1933/34 the Eborians competed in the Campeonato de Portugal, without recording significant results. The club obtained its best classification in 1930/31, reaching the quarter-finals lost to Benfica. In 1931 the mythical Campo Estrela was purchased. On 6 November 1932, Lusitano beat Benfica 4–1 in Evora in a friendly match. Between 1934/35 and 1937/38 the club was one of the forerunners of the League Championship of the
Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
. In the 1938/39 season the Portuguese Championship was renamed
Taça de Portugal The Taça de 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 Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...
(TP) and the 2nd Division championship was created.


The golden age

In 1951/52 Lusitano became National Champion of the
Segunda Divisão : : The Segunda Divisão Portuguesa ( English: ''Portuguese Second Division'') was a football league situated at the third level of the Portuguese football league system. The division had previously been the second level of the Portuguese pyrami ...
, after winning the final pole of the competition with
Vitória de Setúbal 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 * Sofia Vitória (bor ...
, Torreense and U. de Coimbra. It was a sublime moment in the history of the club. The last game, refereed by A. Calheiros, took place in Campo Estrela on 6 January 1952 and ended with a 0–0 draw between Eborians and Sadinos. Lusitano lined-up with the following roster: Dinis Vital; Eduardo and Soeiro; Madeira, Valle and Paulo; Pepe, Di Paola, Teixeira da Silva, Duarte and Domingo. The entrance of the club in the greater division of Portuguese football was commemorated all around the city. The famous Praça do Geraldo received countless expressions of joy.
Évora Évora ( , ), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal City of Évora (), is a city and a municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of . It is the historic capital of the Alentejo reg ...
entered the map of Portuguese football. The winning coach, was former
Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...
and Banfield player Anselmo Pisa. On 28 September
1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, ...
Dinis Vital, Soeiro, Paixão, Madeira, Valle, Paulo,
Flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...
, Di Paola, Patalino, Batalha and Duarte debuted in the competition. In the 1952/53 season Lusitano achieved a record that was only beaten the b
Famalicão
in the 2019/2020 season, i.e., never a newly promoted team was leading the table by the 5th matchday. Also in 1952 the Players Statute was approved. The document contained the rights and duties of the players, defined the prizes policy and praised correctness, loyalty and fair play. Also in the
Taça de Portugal The Taça de 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 Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...
the club surprised, by eliminating Sporting in the quarter-finals. A 3–3 draw in 1953/54, in Évora, against Sporting and the victory against Porto by 2-0 encouraged leaders and supporters. In the 1954/55 season, already under the command of Cândido Tavares, the club finished 10th place in the
Primeira Divisão The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga P ...
, having beaten Sporting 2–1. Also FC Porto with Barrigana, Hernâni and Pedroto would crash in Campo Estrela 2–1. "Porto scored first yesterday in Évora - but did not escape defeat ..." - titled ''
A Bola ''A Bola'' (; ) is a Portuguese language, Portuguese sports newspaper published in Lisbon. History and profile ''A Bola'' was founded in 1945 by Cândido de Oliveira, Ribeiro dos Reis and Vicente de Melo and was then published twice a week. It ...
''. In the
Taça de Portugal The Taça de 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 Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...
, wins 2–1 against V. de Guimarães and 2–0 against
FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, Order of Prince Henry, MHIH, Order of Merit (Portugal), 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 association footbal ...
. In 1955/56, Lusitano finished 8th. Under the guidance of Severiano Correia, the base team included Dinis Vital, Polido, Paixão, José da Costa, Falé, Vicente, Batalha, Vieira, Patalino, Caraça and José Pedro. Special highlight for the 1–1 draw against Sporting in Évora, in a game that inaugurated the new pitch of Campo Estrela. In 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, Ben ...
a 1–1 draw against Benfica. In the 1956/57 season, led by Otto Bumbel, the club achieved its best performance in the biggest event of Portuguese football, reaching an exceptional 5th place. Won 13 out of 26 matches and recorded impressive results during the competition: wins in Evora by 3–2 against Porto (Flora hat-trick) and 2–1 against Sporting, as well as 1-1 draws in
Estádio José Alvalade The Estádio José Alvalade (; ') is a Football (soccer), football stadium in Lisbon, Portugal, home of Sporting Clube de Portugal. It was built adjacent to the site of the Estádio José Alvalade (1956), older stadium. The stadium is named afte ...
and 2 -2 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, Ben ...
. In the 1957/58 season, already under the guidance of Lorenzo Ausina, Lusitano obtained a resounding victory against Benfica by 4–0, in the 8th matchday, at Campo Estrela. In 1958/59, high note for the draws 0-0 and 3–3 at Campo Estrela, against Benfica and Sporting, respectively and return to the Cup semi-finals (eliminated by FC Porto). Otto Bumbel returned to the club in 61/62, but the league streak confirmed the downward trend (12th place with 20 pts). Highlight, in any case, for another victory against Sporting, in the knockout round of the
Cup A cup is an open-top vessel (container) used to hold liquids for drinking, typically with a flattened hemispherical shape, and often with a capacity of about . Cups may be made of pottery (including porcelain), glass, metal, wood, stone, pol ...
(4–1). Already under the command of Josef Fabian, in 1962/63 Lusitano obtained an honorable 7th place with 23 points. In terms of
Taça de Portugal The Taça de 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 Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...
the club obtained its biggest victory so far in official games, beating Portalegrense, in the first round, in Evora, 10–0. Finally, the 1965/66 season would be a sad memory for the club and to all its fans. Lusitano said goodbye to the 1st Division, accompanied by Barreirense, finishing 13th, with only 14 pts, losing 16 of the 26 games played. They had 14 consecutive seasons in which Évora was at the center of the great decisions of national football, mobilizing crowds whenever the big teams, would come to play at the ''Museum City''. The roads were embellished and all paths converged towards the Campo Estrela. The pilgrimage was indescribable. It was in this golden period for Portuguese football that Sporting won the 1963–64 Cup Winners Cup, that Benfica reached its apogee in Europe with the double victory in the
European Champion Clubs' Cup The European Champion Clubs' Cup, also known as Coupe des Clubs Champions Européens, or simply the European Cup, is a trophy awarded annually by UEFA to the Association football, football club that wins the UEFA Champions League. The competiti ...
( 1960/61 and 1961/62) and that the national team reached its best classification ever in a
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
(3rd place in
1966 World Cup The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 to 30 July 1966. England defeated West Germany 4–2 in the final to win their first ever ...
).


The 70s in the Second Division

Lusitano spent the rest of the 1960s in the
Segunda Divisão : : The Segunda Divisão Portuguesa ( English: ''Portuguese Second Division'') was a football league situated at the third level of the Portuguese football league system. The division had previously been the second level of the Portuguese pyrami ...
until relegation to the third tier by the end of the 1969/70 season. A period of several promotions and relegations between the third and second division followed without really contending access back to the top tier. In this period Lusitano were vice-champions of the Third Division in the 1972/73 season, losing the final to Lourosa (0–1).


Almost back in the 80s

In the 1979/80 season Lusitano had a great season in the
Segunda Divisão : : The Segunda Divisão Portuguesa ( English: ''Portuguese Second Division'') was a football league situated at the third level of the Portuguese football league system. The division had previously been the second level of the Portuguese pyrami ...
fighting shoulder to shoulder with Amora FC coached by
José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix (; born 26 January 1963) is a Portuguese professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player, who is currently the head coach of Süper Lig club Fenerba ...
's father Mourinho Félix and overcoming clubs such as Farense,
Estrela da Amadora Club Football Estrela Amadora SAD (), sometimes just Estrela da Amadora, is a Portuguese professional sports club (predominantly football) based in Amadora, northwest of Lisbon. The team is currently competing in the Primeira Liga, after winnin ...
,
Nacional Nacional, the Portuguese and Spanish word for "national", may refer to: Airlines * Nacional Transportes Aéreos, a Brazilian airline defunct in 2002 * Transportes Aéreos Nacional, a Brazilian airline defunct in 1961 Bank * Banco Nacional, a ...
, Barreirense and rivals Juventude. Lusitano started the season with a loss and two draws (including a 0–0 draw against eventual winners Amora FC). However wins against Sacavenense, Nacional and Estrela da Amadora as well as away draws against Farense and Fabril boosted the team a great second round of the season. Amora FC eventually gained direct promotion by finishing 1st and actually became Segunda Divisão champions, while Lusitano had to enter the promotion play-offs against Central and North zones runners-up Académico de Viseu and
Fafe Fafe (), officially the City of Fafe (), is a city and municipality in the northern Portuguese district of Braga. The population in 2021 was 48,502, in an area of approximately . The city itself had a population of 15,703 in 2011. The present ma ...
. Lusitano lost both matches against Académico de Viseu and the match in Fafe, thereby failing promotion back to the
Primeira Divisão The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga P ...
. After a 9th place the following season (in which rivals Juventude nearly got promotion to the Primeira Divisão) and a 3rd place in 1981/82 (only behind Marítimo and Farense) Lusitano announced that Dinis Vital, former captain and the club's main symbol would be appointed as manager for the 1982/83 season. Vital had nearly taken rivals Juventude to the Primeira Divisão in 1981 and took Ginásio de Alcobaça to their only top tier presence in 1982. Vital left Ginásio de Alcobaça in the first division and returned to the club. The season did not seem easy with former Portuguese champions
Belenenses Clube de Futebol Os Belenenses (), commonly known as Os Belenenses or simply Belenenses, is a Portuguese sports club best known for its football team. Founded in 1919, it is one of the oldest Portuguese sports clubs. It is based in the 19,856 ...
(playing in the second division for the first time in history) Farense, Olhanense, Nacional, União da Madeira, Barreirense,
Atlético Atlético, Spanish for ''athletics'', or Athletico in English, may refer to: Sports Teams Athletico *Athletico SC (Lebanon), a Lebanese football academy *Athletic Bilbao, or Atletico Bilbao, Basque students athletic club (also forming Athletic Cl ...
and Juventude. However Lusitano had an amazing season, actually beating Belenenses (1–0) in the Campo Estrela and losing only twice in Évora against Farense and Nacional. However, Lusitano struggled with difficulties in away matches, winning only twice. Farense, coached by
Hristo Mladenov Hristo Stefanov Mladenov () (7 January 1928 – 24 August 1996) was a Bulgarian football player and manager. He was the manager of the Bulgaria national team during the 1974 FIFA World Cup. He coached Bulgaria three times, and narrowly failed ...
won the series and gained direct promotion to the top tier, in addition to becoming
Segunda Divisão : : The Segunda Divisão Portuguesa ( English: ''Portuguese Second Division'') was a football league situated at the third level of the Portuguese football league system. The division had previously been the second level of the Portuguese pyrami ...
champions, while Lusitano had to face the play-offs once again. This time the opponents were Sporting de Espinho, Vizela and another historic club Académica de Coimbra. Notwithstanding a Lusitano victory in
Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of . The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...
(1–2), Sporting de Espinho with former Benfica striker Moínhos was too strong winning both matches against the Eborians and gaining access to Primeira Divisao via play-off. Dinis Vital left the club in the end of the season. He would still gain Farense's promotion in 1986, the year Lusitano was relegated to the third division. The club never again had real a fighting chance to return to the top flight.


Wandering in the lower leagues

By 1990 Lusitano was playing the Segunda Divisão once again, when the FPF announced its intention to extinguish this competition and replace it with two new ones. The Segunda Liga (Divisão de Honra) with no regional separation (second tier) and a II Division B (third tier) with a North, Central and South zones. Teams finishing in the top 7 in three zones of the
Segunda Divisão : : The Segunda Divisão Portuguesa ( English: ''Portuguese Second Division'') was a football league situated at the third level of the Portuguese football league system. The division had previously been the second level of the Portuguese pyrami ...
in 1990 would either obtain: (a) direct promotion to top tier (1st place), (b) access to the promotion playoffs (2nd place) or (c) access to the new Divisão de Honra. Lusitano finished 12th and therefore was allocated to the also newly created II Division B (third tier), where it remained until 1995 (with a brief participation in the Third Division). However, the Third Division would be the club's destiny for the second half of the nineties. The club won the III Division, Series F in the 1993/94 season, as well as the Second Stage, losing the national finals to Liminanos ans thus becoming III Division Vice-Champions. The 2000/2001 Promotion to the II Division B put the club in severe economic difficulties. Also due to a disastrous political option by the FPF. According to the regulations all the teams from
Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...
and
Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...
were automatically allocated to the Southern series of the II B and Third Division. This would mean that rich clubs in the North and Centre of Portugal would only need to travel a few kilometers to play, poor teams from the South were forced to exhausting and expensive flights to the islands constantly throughout the mid-1990s and 2000s.


Regional league, decline and insolvency

Lusitano spent its 100th birthday with no professional football team registered. The club was suspended in the 2011–12 season from entering any tier in the Portuguese football pyramid. In 2012–13 they were allowed to start over in the Évora District League Divisão de Honra Série A (regional second division, fifth division overall).


The failed SAD project and division of the club

On 14 July 2016, the Lusitano Ginásio Clube, Futebol SAD (Sports Company) was created and the Portuguese entrepreneur Nuno Madeira Rodrigues took on the role of president of the board of directors of the newly incorporated SAD. The club transferred the management of professional senior football rights to this newly created entity. The main goal was to bring Lusitano back to the big stage once again. After rebirth the club has mostly competed in the regional leagues until promotion to the Campeonato de Portugal by the end of the 2018/19 season. After the return of professional football in 2013, and especially since the incorporation of the SAD, Lusitano were Évora FA Champions in 2018/19, won the Évora FA Cup three times in a row 2016, 2017 and 2018, as well as the Évora FA Super Cup 2017 and 2019. However, after promotion to the third tier at the end of the 2018/2019 season, the club accused the SAD of abandoning the team throughout the season and thus the merit belonged to the club staff. This led to a separation. Lusitano SAD would keep the professional team, most of the sponsors, the access to the Silveirinha Sports Complex and would participate in the Campeonato de Portugal and, on the other hand, a newly created Associação Lusitano de Évora 1911 would keep the Campo Estrela, the youth teams, the amateur sports and would compete in the EVORA FA second-tier league. On 8 April 2019 due to the
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
pandemic situation, the Portuguese FA cancelled the 2019/20 season of the Campeonato de Portugal. Therefore, there were nor promotions or relegations. Lusitano thus earned the right to remain in this league. The FA also announced the creation of a new third tier in 2021/2022 below the professional 1st and 2nd tier called Liga 3. The Campeonato de Portugal will thus become the fourth tier above regional leagues. In June 2020, Lusitano Ginásio Clube, Futebol, SAD announced that it had reached an agreement with Nigerian entrepreneur Dorothy Nneka Ede, such agreement focusing on a new investment into the club targeting a promotion to higher tiers of Portuguese championships, combined with a total revamp of the Silveirinha infrastructures and the creation of a U-23 team which will serve as nursery for young national and international talents. However, after disagreemens with the owners of the SAD, the board of directors and Nuno Madeira Rodrigues have resigne

Following the resignation of the Board, Lusitano SAD was not able to secure permanence in the Campeonato de Portugal and was relegated to the regional league, where they were set to compete against the Associação Lusitano de Évora 1911. Notwithstanding, the new owners were also unable to register players with the Evora FA for the 2021/2022 season, and also claimed to no longer have access to the Silveirinha Sports Comple

The project of the SAD was dead, five years after its inception.


The Rebirth

Lusitano started competing in the 2021/2022 season with a clear and assumed will to return to national football and with a team made of youngsters from the club's youth system, lead by Nelson Valente and with new Chairman Pedro Caldeira, a former athlete of the club, promotion from the regional League was celebrated in Évora at the end of the 2022/23 season, winning Regional League, Cup and Super Cup. To contest the Campeonato de Portugal, the first semi-professional tier in Portugal (4th League), manager João Nivea was appointed, and the coach from Ponte de Sôr who was given the responsibility of stabilizing the club on this tier almost lead the club to the Liga 3, by qualifying to the final four of the South Zone, after making second place in the regular season. However, the playoffs did not go well for Nívea and the team only obtained one point in six matches. The following season expectations were high, and the team was reinforced with new talented players such as Marcelo Valverde, Cassiano Borges, Johnson Juah and Sele Davou. However, the team made only third place, failing to qualify for the playoffs. An excessive number of draws was principally the reason as the club conceded merely 9 goals in 28 official matches, a European record for the season. In 2024 the club and João Nivea decided not to continue their work relationship and Pedro Russiano was appointed as new manager for the 2024/25 season where the club assumed its express intention to obtain promotion to Liga 3.


Stadiums


Campo Estrela

The Campo Estrela was inaugurated June 15, 1914. It is the third oldest football pitch in the country still existing, only surpassed by the Estádio do Bessa, Bessa (1911) and the
Campo da Constituição Campo da Constituição () was a football stadium in Porto, Portugal, which served as the home ground of FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, Order of Prince Henry, MHIH, Order of Merit (Portugal), OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto ...
(1912) both in
Oporto Porto (), also known in English as Oporto, is the second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipalit ...
. The stadium is a landmark of
Évora Évora ( , ), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal City of Évora (), is a city and a municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of . It is the historic capital of the Alentejo reg ...
and contrarily to popular belief not only associated with Lusitano. The genesis of its construction is umbilically linked to the outbreak of sport in the city and was the first permanent site dedicated to the practice of ''athletic sports'', as it was called. The construction initiative came from the Ateneu Sport Eborense, founded 15 June 1913 by a group of athletes who had left Sport Vitória Académico and who leased the site for fifteen years to install a football and athletics facility (to a lesser extent shooting and equestrianism). Over the years football clearly surpassed all other sports. In 1922 the Ateneu folded and its president, Emídio Crujeira de Carvalho, handed over all its assets and sports equipment to Lusitano, thereby terminating the lease. In 1926 the site was leased by another club, the Ginásio Club Eborense and suffered some abandonment. This club also folded 2 years later and Lusitano started leasing the Campo Estrela for its participation in the Campeonato de Portugal. In 1931, former president and lawyer Mário Ribeiro de Lemos planned an operation for the purchase of the Campo Estrela for 30,000 PTE. The money came directly from the pocket of Mário Ribeiro de Lemos and as soon as the public deed was executed on 3 February 1931, recovery, enlargement and improvement works started immediately over four years. In 1935 it was completely unrecognizable. The pitch was excellent and two locker rooms had been built, with 4 showers each, and a third on for the referees to be isolated from the players. A national innovation. There was a storage room to store various materials. Six rows of wooden benches with a capacity of more than 300 people in a length of more than 60 meters, which were completed by structures for the opening of 18 cabins. It was by far the best field in the
Alentejo Alentejo ( , , ) is a geographical, historical, and cultural region of south–central and southern Portugal. In Portuguese, its name means "beyond the Tagus" (). Alentejo includes the regions of Alto Alentejo Province, Alto Alentejo and Bai ...
and one of the best in Portugal. Campo Estrela also knew its golden period during the 14 years in which Lusitano remained in the I Division (1952–1966). At the end of 1953 the wooden benches were destroyed and replaced by stone ones, stretched out to the length of the field and comfortable cabins were installed. In addition to the improvements a complete medical station and excellent sanitary facilities for dames and gentlemen were also available. On 25 May 1955, the grass pitch was opened in a league match against Sporting (1-1-draw). Évora became the 5th city in the country to have a grass field after Lisbon (
National Stadium Many countries have a national sport stadium, which typically serves as the primary or exclusive home for one or more of a country's national representative sports teams. The term is most often used in reference to an association football ...
,
Estádio José Alvalade The Estádio José Alvalade (; ') is a Football (soccer), football stadium in Lisbon, Portugal, home of Sporting Clube de Portugal. It was built adjacent to the site of the Estádio José Alvalade (1956), older stadium. The stadium is named afte ...
,
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, Ben ...
,
Campo das Salésias Campo das Salésias, also known as Estádio José Manuel Soares, was a multi-use stadium in Lisbon, Portugal. It was initially used as the stadium of C.F. Os Belenenses matches. It was replaced by the current Estádio do Restelo The Estádio d ...
), Porto (
Estádio das Antas The Estádio das Antas (; officially Estádio do Futebol Clube do Porto ) was the third (and longest occupied) stadium of the Portuguese football side FC Porto. It was in use from 1952 to 2004, replacing the earlier Campo da Constituição, 1.6k ...
and Estádio do Lima), Coimbra and
Braga Braga (; ) is a cities of Portugal, city and a Municipalities of Portugal, municipality, capital of the northwestern Portugal, Portuguese Braga (district), district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality ...
. Lusitano was also the fifth club to have a grass pitch, given that the National Stadium and the 28 de Maio Stadium were State-owned. On 4 April 1956, the Campo Estrela saw its first international matches by welcoming the 2nd. day of the
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
International Tournament receiving the matches between Italy and Turkey and between Portugal and Egypt. The other two days were disputed in Lisbon and in Porto. The following year two English lady's teams came to Portugal to present the practice of football among ladies which was taking its first steps abroad. Again Lisbon, Porto and Évora were the chosen cities. In 1964 a mysterious virus destroyed the grass entirely.


Silveirinha Sports Complex

Lusitano was supposed to start playing their home matches at the Complexo Desportivo do Lusitano, commonly known as Silveirinha, which was built in 2006 and is able to hold a
seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...
of 4,000. Construction started 7 February 2006 and was accelerated due to
Luiz Felipe Scolari Luiz Felipe Scolari (; born 9 November 1948), also known as Felipão ("Big Phil"), is a Brazilian football manager and former player who currently serves as the technical director of Grêmio. Considered to be one of the greatest and most su ...
's intention to prepare Portugal for the upcoming
2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...
in the city of Évora. The existing grounds were old and not suitable for training and holding a friendly match against
Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...
, so there was a project to abandon the Campo Estrela which would be demolished and Lusitano would start using the Silveirinha complex after the departure of the
Portugal national football team The Portugal national football team () has represented Portugal in men's international Association football, football competitions since 1921. The national team is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), the governing body for ...
. On the 27 May 2006, Complexo Desportivo do Lusitano hosted an international friendly match between
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
and
Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...
in preparation for Portugal participating in the
2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...
in which Portugal won 4–1. This was the only time an international football match was played in Évora. The Complex had two movable stands installed for that specific match. However, serious financial difficulties by the club led to an insolvency proceeding which resulted in the abandonment of the Silveirinha facility. Judicial proceedings between the parties that were supposed to urbanize the plots where the Campo Estrela is are still ongoing in court. In the aftermath of the conflicts between the SAD and the club, the former decided to re-invest in the Silveirinha Complex as the club prohibited the SAD from using the Campo Estrela facilities. Works were not completed in time and so the SAD played the 2019/2020 Campeonato de Portugal season at the Parque Desportivo Eng. Joaquim António Moreira Carneiro, home to Sport Lisboa e Évora.


Rivalries


Rivalry with Juventude de Évora

Lusitano's main rival is
Juventude Sport Clube Juventude Sport Clube, also commonly known as Juventude de Évora, (abbreviated Juv. Évora) is an amateur sports club based in Évora, Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in South ...
. The clubs are neighbours and the stadiums are confining properties. Literally a few inches from each other. Juventude was founded in 1918, seven years after Lusitano. The clubs met many times in different divisions. The first clash recorded between Lusitano and Juventude was the Brito Paes-Sarmento Beires Cup on 1 May 1924. António Jacinto da Silva Brito Paes was an adventurer pilot who tried a direct flight to
Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...
in 1922 on a plane called the ''Dark Knight''. Guided by a mere compass, the plane crashed on the way, being rescued by a British ship. The intrepid pilot was now planning a journey to
Macao Macau or Macao is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most densely populated region in the world. Formerly a Portuguese colony, the ter ...
in the ''Pátria'', a Breguet 16 Bn2. The trophy was offered by a committee of merchants of Évora to fund this expedition and to be played, in the Ateneu field, between the Champions of the Évora FA, Lusitano Futebol Club and the ''well aligned eleven'' of Juventude Sport. Tickets could be purchased for the price of 2.50 PTE (seated) and 1.50 PTE . Juventude Sport Club won 2–1, thus winning the Brito Paes-Sarmento Beires Cup. In the 1951/52 season Juventude was promoted to the Segunda Divisão as 1951 national champions of the Third Division. Both clubs fought head to head for the promotion to the Primeira Divisao and at the final matchday the Évora rivals were leveled in points. Lusitano, however, had more goals scored and defeated Juventude at the Campo Estrela and obtained an electrifying 5–5 draw in the Sanches Miranda. Lusitano went through to win promotion to the top tier were it would remain for 14 consecutive seasons thus ending official derbies for a long period as Juventude never achieved promotion to the Primeira Divisão. Lusitanists usually call rival supporters ''Cacaruças'' or ''Rasga-Roupa'', while the Juventudists call Lusitano supporters ''Erbanários'' (Herbalists) due to the green and white colours. In October 2019, as result of the conflict between the SAD and the club, and accusing Juventude of favouring the SAD, Lusitano broke off institutional relations with Juventude and also with SL Évora. In 2022 the Evora derby returned as both clubes were playing the Campeonato de Portugal. On 20 November 2022 the derby between Juventude and Lusitano was the second most attended match of the weekend in Portugal, to see Lusitano win 1–2 with a dramatic last minute goal. By the end of the 2023/24 Juventude descended to the regional league which means that the derbies of this season were the last ones ever to be played in the historical grounds of Campo Estrela and Sanches de Miranda as both clube are now building new stadiums which should be in use in 2025.


The ''Évora Derby''




Current squad

.


Personnel


President of the club

*Chairman: Pedro Caldeira


Coaching staff

*Head coach: Pedro Russiani *Assistant coach: David Canilho *Assistant coach: David Carrageta *Goalkeeper coach: Rui Vieira


Coaching history

* Domingos Coelho Morais (1911–1919) * Manuel Albergaria Seixas Bandarra (1920) * [Charles Roger Marquis (1934–35) * Anselmo Pisa (1950/52) * Domingo García y García (1953/54) * Cândido Tavares (1954/55) * Severiano Correia (1955/56) * Otto Bumbel (1956–1958; 1962) * Lorenzo Ausina (1958–1960) * Dante Bianchi (1960) * Trindade dos Santos (1961) * João Brochado (1961) * Iosif Fabian (1962/62) * Janos Biri (1962; 1966) * János Hrötkö (1963–64) * Humberto Buchelli (1964) * Filpo Núñez (1964) * Miguel Bertral (1964–66) * Otto Bumbel (1956–1958; 1962) * Miguel Bertral (1966–69) * Alberto Cunha (1969–70) * Leonildo Vilanova (1971–1973; 1989/90) * Mitó (1973–75) * Mário Nunes (1977–78) * Josef Toth Zelle (1977–78) * Juanito (1979–81) * Dinis Vital (1982–83) * Joaquim Teixeira (1983–84) *
Carlos Alhinho Carlos Alexandre Fortes Alhinho (10 January 1949 – 31 May 2008) was a Portuguese professional football central defender and manager. He was one of the few players in his generation to have played for the Big Three in Portugal – Sporting, ...
(1984–85) * Mitó (1985–86) * João Libório (1986–87) * Carlos Cardoso (1987–88) * Pedro Gomes (1988–89) * Joaquim Meirim (1989–90) * Leonildo Vilanova (1971–1973; 1989/90) * Dinis Vital (1991–92) * Juanito (1992–93) * Fernando Casaca (1992–93) * João Cardoso (1993–96) * José Rocha (1999–2000) * Luís Perdigão (2000–01) * Dinis Vital (2001–02) * Vitor Emoriz (2002–003) * João Inverno (2003) * Pedro Baptista (2003–05) *
Teixeira Teixeira (, ) is a Galician-Portuguese surname based on the toponym ''Teixeira'', derived from ''teixo'' " yew tree" (Latin ''taxus''). The progenitors of the name were a "Noble Portuguese Marrano family, originally bearing the surname of Samp ...
(2005–2006) * José Vasques (2006–2007) * Paulo Sousa (2007–2009) * João Paulo Fialho (2009–2010) * Luís Patrão (2010–2011) * Nélson Valente (2012–2015) * André Barreto (2016–2017) * Duarte Machado (2017–2018) * Rui Salgado (2018–2019) * Nélson Valente (2019–2022) * João Nívea (2022–2024) * João Nívea (2024-Incumbent)


Notable players

* Cândido Tavares * Dinis Vital *
José Pedro Biléu José Pedro Biléu (born 10 April 1932, in Mora) is a former Portuguese footballer who played as forward. Football career José Pedro started playing for his local team Luso Morense in 1950. The team did well in the regional league and thir ...
* Falé *
Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...
* Patalino * Vicente Di Paola *
Valle Valle may refer to: * Valle (surname) Geography *"Valle", the cultural and climatic zone of the dry subtropical Interandean Valles of the Andes of Peru, Bolivia, and northwest Argentina * University of Valle, a public university in Cali, Colomb ...
*
Pepe Pepe is a pet form of the Spanish and Portuguese name José (Joseph). It is also a surname. * People Mononyms *Pepe (footballer, born 1935), Brazilian footballer José Macia *Pepe (footballer, born 1983), Brazilian-born Portuguese footballer ...
* Soeiro * Augusto Batalha * Polido * Duarte * Teotónio * Vicente * Athos * Manuel Paixão * Caraça *
Flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...
* Índio * Teixeira da Silva * Miguel Bertral *
José Cardona José Enrique Gutiérrez Cardona (27 February 1939 - 30 January 2013), more commonly known as ''Cardona'' or ''Indio Cardona'' or ''Coneja Cardona'', was a professional footballer. Early career Cardona was born in La Lima, Honduras. In 1957 ...
* Justo Wilfredo Garcia * Melanio Olmedo *
Morato Morato or Morató is a surname. It is most prevalent in Brazil, followed by Spain and the Philippines. Notable people with this surname include: * Andrew Eric Feitosa (born 1992), Brazilian footballer commonly known as Morato * António Henriques ...
* Augusto Matine * Carlos Zambujo * Chico Bolota * Carlos Cunha * José Chico * José Cândido * Dedeu * Martelo * Ruzhin Kerimov * Manuel Sardinha * Joaquim Ramalho * Alexandre Alhinho * Óscar Duarte * Figueiredo * Pio * Zorrinho * Jorge Vital *
Macaé Macaé () is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, 180 km northeast of the state capital. It is the birthplace of the 13th president of Brazil, Washington Luís. Geography Location Macaé is generally consider ...
* Jorge Teigão * Rui Romicha *
Zé Eduardo Zé Eduardo or José Eduardo may refer to: * Zé Eduardo (footballer, born 1987), real name José Eduardo Bischofe de Almeida, Brazilian footballer * Zé Eduardo (footballer, born 1991), real name José Eduardo de Araújo, Brazilian footballer * Zé ...
* Robson *
Paulo Sousa Paulo Manuel Carvalho de Sousa (; born 30 August 1970) is a Portuguese football manager and former professional player who played as a defensive midfielder. He is the current manager of UAE Pro League club Shabab Al Ahli. Starting his career ...
*
José Carlos Barbosa José Carlos Barbosa (born October 26, 1964), professionally known as Barbosinha, is a Brazilian politician and lawyer who is the 11th and current Vice Governor of Mato Grosso do Sul, Vice-Governor of Mato Grosso do Sul in the government of Eduard ...
* Ricardo Pateiro * Calila *
Toni Lopes António Pedro de Brito Lopes (born 23 July 1979), commonly known as Toni, is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a right-back. After starting out professionally at Farense, he went on to represent Benfica and Beira Mar in the P ...
*
Zé Tó José Ántónio Ramos Ribeiro (born 11 September 1977), known as Zé Tó, is a Portugal, Portuguese retired Association football, footballer who played mainly as an attacking midfielder. Club career Born in Lubango, Angola, Zé Tó began his pr ...
* Tó Zé *
Teixeira Teixeira (, ) is a Galician-Portuguese surname based on the toponym ''Teixeira'', derived from ''teixo'' " yew tree" (Latin ''taxus''). The progenitors of the name were a "Noble Portuguese Marrano family, originally bearing the surname of Samp ...
* João de Deus * Nuno Curto *
Toni Toni, Toñi or Tóni is a unisex given name used in several European countries as well as among individuals with ancestry from these countries outside Europe. In Spanish language, Spanish, Italian language, Italian, Croatian language, Croatian an ...
* Luís Canhoto * Hélder Cabral * Targino


Honours

* Military Order of Our Knights of Lord Jesus Christ :* 1932 *
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 ...
:* Winners (1): 1951–52 * Campeonato de Portugal (4th tier) :* Winners (1): 2024-25 *Fair-Play Cup Mundo Desportivo :* Winners (2): 1957 and 1958 * Portuguese Third Division :* Vice-Champions: 1993–94 * Évora FA Championship :* Winners (15): 1917–18, 1921–22, 1922–23, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1939–40, 1940–41, 2003–04, 2018–19, 2021-2022 * Évora FA Cup :*Winners (5): 2003–04, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2020-2021, 2021-2022 * Évora FA Supercup :* Winners (3): 2016–17, 2018–19, 2021/2022


League and cup history


Other Sports

The club had gymnastics,
fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...
, basketball, rugby,
orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that involve using a map and compass to navigation, navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a specia ...
and tennis sections. The club currently has more than 350 athletes registered.


References


External links


Official Site

Profile
at ForaDeJogo
Profile
at ZeroZero

{{Authority control Football clubs in Portugal Association football clubs established in 1911 1911 establishments in Portugal Primeira Liga clubs Évora