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G.D. Estoril Praia

From Alfawiki
Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia
Company typeSports club
IndustrySports
FoundedMay 17, 1939; 87 years ago (1939-05-17)
FounderJoaquim Cardim, José Ereia, João Rebelo, Fausto Cardoso de Figueiredo
Headquarters
Estoril, Cascais
,
Portugal
Area served
Portugal
Key people
David Blitzer (owner via Global Football Holdings)
ProductsFootball, futsal, basketball teams
ParentGlobal Football Holdings (majority owner)
Websiteestorilpraia.com

Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia (), commonly referred to as Estoril, is a professional sports organization located in Estoril, Cascais, within the Lisbon region of Portugal. Established on 17 May 1939, its football squad competes in the Primeira Liga and hosts home fixtures at the Estádio António Coimbra da Mota, which accommodates 5,094 spectators. Besides football, the club also participates in futsal and basketball competitions.

The senior football side of Estoril has captured nine titles at the second-tier level, with the most recent triumph occurring in the 2011–12 Liga de Honra. This achievement brought individual honors to several team members: Licá earned the LPFP Liga de Honra Player of the Year award, goalkeeper Vagner was recognized as LPFP Liga de Honra Goalkeeper of the Year, and manager Marco Silva received LPFP Liga de Honra Coach of the Year distinction.

Foundation and early years

Grupo Desportivo Estoril Plage was founded on 17 May 1939 by Joaquim Cardim, José Ereia, João Rebelo, among others, with significant support from Fausto Cardoso de Figueiredo, a prosperous businessman who owned the Lisbon-Cascais railway line, several English hotels, and the Estoril Casino. The club’s emblem and its yellow and blue colors symbolize the nearby beaches and the Atlantic Ocean.

In its initial competitive years, Estoril took part in the Campeonato de Lisboa and the Taça de Portugal. The team reached the final of the Taça de Portugal in the 1943–44 season but was defeated 8–0 by Benfica. Estoril made its first appearance in the Primeira Liga during the 1944–45 season, finishing seventh in their debut campaign at Portugal’s highest level. After fluctuating between divisions for several seasons, Estoril remained in the top flight until their relegation in 1952–53.

Period of downturn and resurgence

Following their demotion, Estoril spent 22 seasons competing in the Segunda Divisão before achieving promotion in 1973 under English manager Jimmy Hagan. Hagan, who had previously led Benfica to three consecutive league championships from 1970 to 1973, successfully guided Estoril back to Primeira Liga. During that tenure, Estoril secured an eighth-place league finish and reached a cup quarter-final. Throughout the 1980s, they maintained a stable mid-table presence.

In the late 1980s, former player Fernando Santos assumed managerial duties at age 36. He reconstructed the team and led them back into Primeira Liga. Under his stewardship, Estoril solidified their position in Portugal’s top division until relegation occurred in the 1993–94 season coinciding with his departure.

After 1994, Estoril mainly competed within the Liga de Honra (second division) for fourteen seasons. The club experienced its first-ever descent to the third tier during 1998–99 and underwent multiple promotions and relegations thereafter.

Developments in the 21st century

At the turn of the century, Estoril played in Portugal’s Second Division. In 2002, Ulisses Morais became manager and achieved consecutive promotions that returned Estoril to Primeira Liga. During the 2004–05 season under manager Litos, however, Estoril finished seventeenth and were relegated after just one year back at top level.

The 2011–12 campaign saw new ownership take control alongside manager Marco Silva, who replaced Vinícius Eutrópio mid-season. That year, Estoril clinched the Liga de Honra title by a five-point margin over Moreirense, securing promotion to Primeira Liga. Key contributors included players such as João Coimbra, Licá, Steven Vitória, and goalkeeper Vagner. Returning to Primeira Liga for the 2012–13 season, Estoril achieved an impressive fifth-place finish as a newly promoted side and qualified for European competition for the first time by entering the Europa League third qualifying round. They progressed to the group stage after overcoming Hapoel Ramat Gan and Pasching, ultimately finishing fourth in a group featuring Sevilla, Freiburg, and Slovan Liberec.

During the following season (2013–14), Estoril attained their highest league placement ever—fourth place—earning direct qualification to the Europa League group stage.

In May 2019, American investor David Blitzer, through Global Football Holdings, acquired a controlling interest in Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia.

Stadium

Estoril hosts its matches at the Estádio António Coimbra da Mota, which accommodates up to 8,000 spectators. This venue also serves as the home ground for Estoril's reserve squad.

Significantly, the stadium was utilized by the Sweden national team as a training site during UEFA Euro 2004. Additionally, it has been the location for fixtures involving the Portuguese under-21 national football team and has staged games for the Portuguese national rugby union team, including contests against Ukraine in the 2006 European Nations Cup First Division and Uruguay during the 2007 Rugby World Cup repechage qualifiers.

European cup history

Season Competition Stage Opponent Home Result Away Result Aggregate Score
2013–14 UEFA Europa League Third qualifying round Template:Country data ISRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Hapoel Ramat Gan 0–0 1–0 1–0
Play-off round Template:Country data AUTTemplate:Namespace detect showall Pasching 2–0 2–1 4–1
Group H Template:Country data ESPTemplate:Namespace detect showall Sevilla 1–2 1–1 4th place
Template:Country data CZETemplate:Namespace detect showall Slovan Liberec 1–2 1–2
Germany Freiburg 0–0 1–1
2014–15 UEFA Europa League Group E Template:Country data NLDTemplate:Namespace detect showall PSV Eindhoven 3–3 0–1 3rd place
Template:Country data GRCTemplate:Namespace detect showall Panathinaikos 2–0 1–1
Template:Country data RUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Dynamo Moscow 1–2 0–1

Domestic honours

  • "FPF" Cup (First Division)
    • Finalist (1): 1976–77


Personnel honours

  • LPFP Liga Portugal 2 Player of the Year
    • 2011–12: Licá
    • 2020–21: Miguel Crespo
  • LPFP Liga Portugal 2 Breakthrough Player of the Year
    • 2020–21: André Vidigal
  • LPFP Liga Portugal 2 Goalkeeper of the Year
    • 2011–12: Vagner
    • 2020–21: Dani Figueira
  • LPFP Liga Portugal 2 Coach of the Year
    • 2011–12: Marco Silva

Coaching staff

Role Personnel
Head coach Template:Country data SCOTemplate:Namespace detect showall Ian Cathro
Assistant head coach Template:Country data PORTemplate:Namespace detect showall Paulo Mateus
First-team coach Template:Country data PORTemplate:Namespace detect showall Marco Pimenta
Goalkeeping coach Template:Country data PORTemplate:Namespace detect showall Pedro Miranda
Video Analyst Template:Country data PORTemplate:Namespace detect showall Marco Pedroso


Coaching history

  • Augusto Silva (1942–1945)
  • Lippo Hertzka (1946–1947)
  • János Biri (1947–1949)
  • Jimmy Hagan (1973–1975, 1981–1982)
  • António Medeiros (1975–1977, 1984)
  • José Torres (1979–1981)
  • Mário Wilson (1983–1984, 1984–1986)
  • António Fidalgo (1986–1987)
  • Fernando Santos (1987–1994)
  • Carlos Manuel (1994–1996)
  • Isidro Beato (1996–1998)
  • Rui Águas (1998–1999)
  • Minervino Pietra (1999–2000)
  • José Rachão (2000–2001)
  • José Morais (2001–2002)
  • Ulisses Morais (November 2002 – August 2004)
  • Litos (August 2004 – June 2005, January 2006 – May 2007)
  • Daúto Faquirá (July 2005 – January 2006)
  • Marco Paulo (January 2006)
  • Tulipa (May 2007 – September 2008)
  • Manuel Pinho (interim, September 2008)
  • João Carlos Pereira (September 2008 – May 2009)
  • Hélder Cristóvão (July – September 2009)
  • Professor Neca (September 2009 – May 2010)
  • Vinícius Eutrópio (May 2010 – September 2011)
  • Marco Silva (September 2011 – May 2014)
  • José Couceiro (May 2014 – March 2015)
  • Fabiano Soares (March 2015 – December 2016)
  • Pedro Gómez Carmona (December 2016 – March 2017)
  • Pedro Emanuel (March – October 2017)
  • Filipe Pedro (interim, October – November 2017)
  • Ivo Vieira (November 2017 – June 2018)
  • Luís Freire (July 2018 – January 2019)
  • Bruno Baltazar (January – June 2019)
  • Tiago Fernandes (July 2019 – January 2020)
  • Pedro Duarte (January – June 2020)
  • Bruno Pinheiro (July 2020 – June 2022)
  • Nélson Veríssimo (July 2022 – February 2023)
  • Ricardo Soares (February – June 2023)
  • Álvaro Pacheco (July – September 2023)
  • Vasco Seabra (September 2023 – June 2024)
  • Ian Cathro (July 2024 – present)


League and cup history

... [table continues with similar structure, omitted for brevity] ... 2023–242024–25 Primeira Liga
Season Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Cup League Cup Notes
1944–45 1D 7 18 6 4 8 44 34 16 Round 1 Template:Center
1945–46 2D – – – – – – – – Round 1 Template:Center
1946–47 1D 5 26 16 1 9 96 55 33 not held Template:Center
1947–48 1D 4 26 16 4 6 91 49 36 Quarter-final
1D 13 34 9 6 19 49 58 '33' 'Round 5' 'Final'
'Round 3' '–'
A. Template:Note Also competed in Campeonato de Lisboa.
C. Template:Note Taça de Portugal was not conducted due to the conclusion of regional championships, prompting a new competition format.
D. Template:Note Highest league placement achieved in club history.
E. Template:Note Taça de Portugal was suspended because of the Latin Cup held at Estádio Nacional.
F. Template:Note LigaPro was halted with ten matches remaining as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last updated: 18 July 2014
Div. = Division; 1D = Primeira Liga; 2H = Liga de Honra; 2DS/2D = Portuguese Second Division
Pos. = Position; Pl = Games played; W = Victories; D = Draws; L = Defeats; GS = Goals scored; GA = Goals conceded; P = Points

External links

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