Rui Costa

Rui Manuel César Costa, born 29 March 1972, is a Portuguese former footballer and the current 34th president of Benfica. Over a 17-year top-flight career, he played mostly for Benfica, Fiorentina, and AC Milan, winning a Primeira Liga title, a Taça de Portugal, a Serie A title, three Coppa Italia, a UEFA Champions League, and a UEFA Super Cup. For Portugal, he earned 94 caps and scored 26 goals, appearing at three European Championships and one World Cup.

An attacking midfielder, Costa was known for his technique, playmaking, and scoring ability. In his prime, he was considered among the world’s best midfielders and one of Portugal’s greatest ever players. Pelé included him in the FIFA 100 in 2004.

Costa joined Benfica’s youth system after impressing Eusébio during a trial at age five. He was loaned to Fafe for his first full season, then returned in 1991 after scoring a penalty to win the Under-21 World Cup for Portugal. He became a regular for Benfica, forming a key midfield partnership with João Vieira Pinto. In his last two seasons before leaving, he won the Taça de Portugal in 1993 and the league title in 1993–94—Benfica’s last league title for ten years.

Fiorentina signed the 21-year-old Costa after his third senior season at Benfica. Despite constant interest from other clubs, he stayed until one season before Fiorentina’s bankruptcy, winning two Coppa Italia and a Supercoppa Italiana. In June 2001, Fiorentina agreed to sell Costa and Francesco Toldo to Parma, but both refused to join; they were instead sold to AC Milan and Inter Milan for the same total fee.

At AC Milan, Costa became the club’s most expensive transfer ever, costing 85 billion lire (€43.9 million). He scored his first goal in a 4–0 UEFA Cup win over BATE Borisov on 27 September 2001, adding goals against CSKA Sofia and Hapoel Tel Aviv as Milan reached the semi-finals. Injuries, including a wrist injury on his debut, hampered his first season. After returning to play at Fiorentina, he greeted former fans in tears, angering Milan supporters.

In his second season, Costa secured a starting spot ahead of new signing Rivaldo. On 24 September 2002, he assisted three goals in a 4–0 Champions League win at Deportivo de La Coruña, prompting a commentator to call him three times better than Zinedine Zidane. He scored his first domestic goal in a Coppa Italia win over Ancona on 18 December. In the 2003 Coppa Italia final, he played only 30 minutes as a substitute to rest for the Champions League final, where he was substituted injured in a goalless draw that Milan won on penalties. On 29 August, he crossed for Andriy Shevchenko’s winner in the 1–0 UEFA Super Cup victory over Porto.

From 2003–04, Costa’s playing time decreased due to Kaká’s emergence. He scored his first three league goals that season, helping Milan win the Serie A title.

On 25 May 2006, Costa’s return to Benfica was announced after he agreed to end his €4.6 million-per-year contract with Milan. He scored on his home return in a Champions League qualifier against Austria Wien in August 2006. Under manager Fernando Santos, he played regularly when fit but suffered a muscle tear in October that kept him out for three months, and another muscular injury in February. Before the season ended, Costa announced the next would be his last. After helping Benfica qualify for the Champions League group stage—including a brace against Copenhagen—the team was drawn against his former club Milan, and he played one last time at the San Siro on 18 September 2007. He remained a first-team choice under José Antonio Camacho and Fernando Chalana.