Álvaro Pacheco

He is currently the manager of Primeira Liga club Vitória SC.

Álvaro Pacheco

Pacheco in 2023
Personal information
Full name	Álvaro Adriano Teixeira Pacheco
Date of birth	(1971-06-25) 25 June 1971 (age 52)
Place of birth	Vila Cova da Lixa, Portugal
Position(s)	Striker
Team information
Current team	Vitória SC (manager)
Youth career
1983–1988	Lixa
1988–1989	Felgueiras
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1989–1991	Felgueiras	42	(9)
1991–1994	Lixa	25	(8)
1994–1995	Aves	8	(0)
1995–1996	Lixa	21	(5)
1996–1997	Tirsense	28	(4)
1997–1999	Estoril	35	(11)
1999–2000	Lixa	30	(15)
2000–2002	Vilanovense	44	(14)
2002–2003	Dragões Sandinenses	38	(21)
2003–2005	Fafe	53	(8)
2005–2007	Paredes	41	(13)
2007	Amarante	0	(0)
Managerial career
2009–2011	Penafiel (youth)
2011–2012	Lixa
2012–2014	Penafiel (assistant)
2014–2016	Moreirense (assistant)
2016–2017	Boavista (assistant)
2018	Jonava (assistant)
2018–2019	Fafe
2019–2022	Vizela
2023	Estoril
2023–	Vitória SC
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

After achieving a total of 70 games in the second tier as a player, he worked as an assistant manager to Miguel Leal before managing in his own right at Fafe. Hired at Vizela in 2019, he achieved consecutive promotions to the Primeira Liga in his first two seasons, and also led Estoril in the top flight.

Born in Vila Cova da Lixa, Felgueiras, Pacheco is a product of the football academies of his local clubs Lixa and F.C. Felgueiras, while working as a locksmith with his father as a teenager. He started playing professional football with Felgueiras, having played 70 games in the second tier, and had spent most of his career in semi-pro leagues in Portugal. His first job as a manager was in 2005 with the youth ranks of his club Paredes, and he retired from playing in 2007, at the age of 34.

Early years

Pacheco began his senior coaching career with Lixa in 2011. Afterwards, he was the assistant manager for Miguel Leal at Penafiel, Moreirense and Boavista, and with Filipe Ribeiro at Jonava in Lithuania.

On 24 September 2018, Pacheco returned to work as a head coach at Fafe, ranked 7th in the third tier. In his one season there, he took the team to the playoffs, where they were eliminated by Praiense in the quarter-finals.

Vizela

In June 2019, Pacheco signed for Vizela, another team eliminated from the same stage of the play-offs. His first season was aborted because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Portuguese Football Federation promoted leaders Vizela and Arouca to the second tier.

On his debut as a professional manager on 12 September 2020, Pacheco won 2–1 at home to U.D. Oliveirense. His team sealed a second successive promotion the following 22 May, beating Arouca to second place with a 5–2 home win over Vilafranquense on the final day; Vizela's only previous season in the Primeira Liga was 1984–85. In July 2021, he was named Manager of the Year at the LPFP Awards and signed a contract for two more years.

In his first top-flight game on 6 August 2021, Pacheco's Vizela lost 3–0 at reigning champions Sporting CP. On 23 December, his side won 1–0 at home in the fifth round of the Taça de Portugal against district neighbours and cup holders Braga. The team were eliminated 3–1 at home by Porto in the quarter-finals on 12 January 2022.

On 30 November 2022, with Vizela in a safe 13th place and the season paused due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Pacheco was nonetheless dismissed and replaced by under-23 manager Tulipa. Days later, he was honoured by Vizela City Hall, and said that he wanted to return to the club.

Estoril

On 19 June 2023, Pacheco was hired for one year at fellow top-flight team Estoril Praia, where he had played nearly a quarter of a century earlier. On 24 September, after six Primeira Liga matches, Estoril, sitting in penultimate place in the league table with 4 points, announced that Pacheco and his coaching staff had been relieved of their duties.

Vitória SC

On 4 October 2023, Pacheco was appointed manager of Primeira Liga side Vitória S.C., signing a two-year contract with the Guimarães-based side. On October 4, 2023, Álvaro Pacheco was officially announced as the new coach of Vitória Sport Club. Álvaro Pacheco's arrival at Vitória brought a record score on the 19th matchday, with 36 points. Characterized by his beret as his trademark, as well as his charisma and way of being in soccer, Álvaro Pacheco has begun to make a name for himself internationally, with Diario AS indicating a "revolution" on the benches in Portugal.

As of match played 27 April 2024

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Lixa		1 July 2011	12 March 2012	25	14	3	8	46	29	+17	056.00
Fafe		17 September 2018	4 June 2019	33	21	8	4	58	22	+36	063.64
Vizela		4 June 2019	30 November 2022	120	55	32	33	199	143	+56	045.83
Estoril		19 June 2023	24 September 2023	8	3	1	4	19	16	+3	037.50
Vitória SC		4 October 2023	Present	30	18	5	7	49	30	+19	060.00
Total				216	111	49	56	371	240	+131	051.39

• Liga Portugal 2 Coach of the Season: 2020-21