José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix ( ; ; born 26 January 1963) is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of Primeira Liga club Benfica. Nicknamed "the Special One", he is one of the most decorated managers of all time. Mourinho has won league championships in four countries, is one of only seven managers to have won the European Cup with two clubs, and is the only manager to have won all three current UEFA club competitions.

After an uneventful career as a midfielder in the Portuguese leagues, Mourinho retired from playing aged 24 and moved into coaching. He was first an interpreter for Bobby Robson at Sporting CP and Porto, before gaining success as an assistant at Barcelona under Robson and his successor, Louis van Gaal. After brief managerial stints at Benfica and União de Leiria, Mourinho returned to Porto in 2002, winning two Primeira Liga titles, the Taça de Portugal, the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Champions League. That success earned him a move to Chelsea in 2004, where he remarked, "I think I'm [the] special one" at his first press conference, leading to British media dubbing him "the Special One". With Chelsea, Mourinho won two Premier League titles, an FA Cup, and two League Cups in three seasons, before departing in 2007 amid reports of disagreements with owner Roman Abramovich.

In 2008, Mourinho joined Italian club Inter Milan. He led them to the Serie A title in his first season, before winning a continental treble—Serie A, the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League—in 2010, a first in history for an Italian club. This made him one of five coaches to have won the European Cup with two clubs, and later that year, he was crowned the inaugural FIFA World Coach of the Year. Mourinho left Real Madrid in 2013 and rejoined Chelsea, where he won another league title and League Cup, but was dismissed in 2015 after a poor run of results.

Mourinho was appointed manager of Manchester United in 2016 and of Tottenham Hotspur in 2019, but both tenures ended acrimoniously. At Manchester United, he won the Community Shield, League Cup and UEFA Europa League in his first season. At Tottenham, he led the team to a League Cup final. He managed Roma from 2021 to 2024, winning the inaugural UEFA Europa Conference League in his first season. This was Roma's first European title and their first trophy since 2008. The achievement made Mourinho the first manager to win a major European competition with four different clubs and the third to win all UEFA club competitions. He joined Turkish Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe in July 2024,

Mourinho was named Portuguese Coach of the Century by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) in 2015. Due to his tactical knowledge, charismatic and controversial personality, and a reputation for prioritising results over attractive football, he has drawn comparisons—from both admirers and critics—with Argentine manager Helenio Herrera.

Early life and education

Mourinho was born in 1963 into a large middle-class family in Setúbal, Portugal, as the son of goalkeeper José Manuel Mourinho Félix, who was known by the name Félix Mourinho, and primary school teacher Maria Júlia Carrajola dos Santos. His father played football professionally for Vitória de Setúbal and Belenenses, earning one cap for Portugal in 1972, and later worked as a football manager and the club director of Vitória de Setúbal. His mother was raised by her uncle Mário Lêdo, who came to control the Setúbal sardine canning industry under António de Oliveira Salazar's Estado Novo and funded the construction of Vitória's Estádio do Bonfim in 1953–1961. Following the regime's downfall in the Carnation Revolution, Lêdo's assets were nationalised during the short-lived Ongoing Revolutionary Process in 1975, but he kept a mansion in near Palmela, where Mourinho grew up with his parents.

Education

Mourinho failed in the subject of mathematics during the final year of secondary school and this prevented him from finishing high school in time to enrol at the physical education college as was his wish. After finishing secondary school in the special examination period of September, his mother enrolled him in a private business school because there were no vacant seats for him in the physical education college and his mother believed business school would bring him to a more successful career path. Mourinho dropped out of business school on his first day, deciding he would rather focus on sport, and chose to attend the Instituto Superior de Educação Física (ISEF) of the Technical University of Lisbon to study physical education. He was taught there by his mentor Manuel Sérgio, the ex-chairman and deputy director of Belenenses (1975–77), whose humanist approach to kinesiology he later cited as formative. After Mourinho concluded his education in ISEF, he attended coaching courses held by the English and Scottish Football Associations. In addition to playing for the reserves, Mourinho was usually tasked with scouting other teams for his father. He was rarely selected by his father, but he made his debut for the club in the third round of the Taça de Portugal, in a 2–1 extra time win over Salgueiros. Mourinho mostly spent the season playing for the reserve team, and he played for the first team in the second round of the Taça de Portugal against Clube Desportivo de Vila Franca, an amateur club from Vila Franca do Campo, São Miguel Island, Azores. With Belenenses 8–0 up at half-time, Mourinho came on as a second-half substitute and scored a hat-trick as the team won 17–0, which remains the club's biggest ever victory in the tournament. Mourinho decided that he lacked the requisite pace and power to become a professional and chose to focus on becoming a football coach instead.

Coaching career

After leaving his job as a physical education school teacher, Mourinho looked for a path into professional football management in his hometown and became youth team coach at Vitória de Setúbal in the early 1990s. Later, he accepted the position of assistant manager at Estrela da Amadora, then was a scout at Ovarense. Then, in 1992, an opportunity arose to work as a translator for a top foreign coach: Bobby Robson had been appointed as the new manager of Lisbon club Sporting CP and needed an English-speaking local coach to work as his interpreter.

Mourinho began discussing tactics and coaching with Robson in his interpreting role. Mourinho gradually became a prominent figure of the club's staff by translating at press conferences, planning practice sessions and helping players through tactical advice and analyses of the opposition. Robson and Mourinho's styles complemented each other: the Englishman favoured an attacking style, while Mourinho covered defensive options, and the Portuguese's love of planning and training combined with Robson's direct man-management. The Barcelona attack was led by a prime Ronaldo – whom Mourinho regards as the best player post-Diego Maradona. The partnership was fruitful and Barcelona finished the season by winning the European Cup Winners' Cup, the Copa del Rey and Supercopa de España. Robson moved clubs the following season but this time Mourinho did not follow, as Barcelona were keen to retain him as assistant manager.

Managerial career

Benfica

The chance to become a top-tier manager arrived in September 2000 when Mourinho was appointed as the replacement for Benfica manager Jupp Heynckes after the fourth week of the Primeira Liga.

The Benfica hierarchy wanted to appoint Jesualdo Ferreira as the new assistant coach, but Mourinho refused and picked Carlos Mozer, a retired Benfica defender, as his right-hand man instead. Mourinho was highly critical of Ferreira, whom he had first encountered as his teacher at ISEF and later lambasted the veteran coach by stating, "This could be the story of a donkey who worked for 30 years but never became a horse."

Only weeks after being given the job at Benfica, Mourinho's mentor, Bobby Robson, offered him the assistant manager's role at Newcastle United. Such was Robson's desperation for Mourinho to join him he offered to step down after two years in charge and hand over the reins to Mourinho. Mourinho turned the offer down and said he knew Robson would never step down at the club he loved.

Mourinho and Mozer proved a popular combination, enjoying a 3–0 win against rivals Sporting CP in December. Their reign appeared to be at risk after Benfica's election turned against club president João Vale e Azevedo and the newly elected Manuel Vilarinho said that he would instate ex-Benfica player Toni as his new coach. after just nine league games in charge. Upon later reflection, Vilarinho rued his poor judgement and expressed his frustration at losing Mourinho:

At the end of a Manchester United league game at Mourinho's former club Chelsea on 20 October 2018, Mourinho was involved in a tunnel incident. With Chelsea's Ross Barkley scoring a 96th-minute equaliser, a Chelsea coach, Marco Ianni, celebrated the goal by running across the Manchester United bench and clenching his fists close to Mourinho's face. An incensed Mourinho leapt up and attempted to chase Ianni down the tunnel, with security intervening. As he sat back down, some Chelsea fans repeatedly (and loudly) started chanting against Mourinho.

After starting the 2018–19 season with just seven wins in the first 17 Premier League games, leaving Manchester United 19 points behind the league leaders, Mourinho was sacked by the club on 18 December 2018.

Tottenham Hotspur

On 20 November 2019, Mourinho was appointed as the manager of Tottenham Hotspur on a four-year contract, replacing the sacked Mauricio Pochettino.

2019–20: First season with Tottenham

thumb|right|Mourinho managing [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur in a Champions League game against RB Leipzig in 2020]]

On 23 November 2019, Mourinho managed his first match with Tottenham Hotspur in a 3–2 away win against West Ham United. He later sparked media attention on 26 November 2019, when he claimed that ball boy Callum Hynes 'assisted' Spurs' second goal in a 4–2 win over Olympiacos in the Champions League. In the Champions League round of 16, Tottenham Hotspur lost both matches to be defeated 0–4 on aggregate against RB Leipzig.

Mourinho recorded his 300th win in English football when Tottenham beat West Ham United 2–0 on 23 June 2020. He secured his first ever win as a manager at St James' Park on 15 July 2020 when Tottenham defeated Newcastle by a scoreline of 3–1. Mourinho finished his first season with Tottenham Hotspur at sixth position in the Premier League.

2020–21: Cup final and dismissal

On 4 October 2020, Mourinho managed Tottenham Hotspur to a 6–1 win against his former club Manchester United at Old Trafford. A 2–0 victory over Arsenal on 6 December 2020 put Tottenham on top of the Premier League and meant Mourinho was only the club's second manager to win his first two North London derbies. A last-minute 2–1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield saw them drop to second place, three points off the top.

On 10 February 2021, Tottenham were knocked out of the FA Cup, losing 5–4 after extra time to Everton in the quarter-finals; this was the first time since 2010 that a José Mourinho-led team had conceded five goals in a match. On 23 February 2021, Tottenham lost 1–0 to Chelsea, marking the first time in his career that Mourinho had lost two consecutive home games. On 18 March, Tottenham lost 3–0 to Dinamo Zagreb after extra time in the second leg of the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League round of 16, being eliminated from the competition 3–2 on aggregate.

On 19 April 2021, Mourinho was sacked by Tottenham Hotspur after 17 months in charge of the club, days before the EFL Cup Final against Manchester City. This marked the first time Mourinho had departed a club without winning a trophy since 2002. He was replaced by former Tottenham player Ryan Mason as interim manager.

Roma

On 4 May 2021, Mourinho was appointed head coach of Roma from the start of the 2021–22 season, replacing compatriot Paulo Fonseca.

2021–22: Ending Roma's trophy drought and UEFA Treble

In his first transfer window at Roma, Mourinho brought in several significant signings in the summer. His first move in the transfer market was the permanent signing of Atalanta defender Roger Ibañez for a fee of €8m on 1 July. He also identified some areas in which the team required improvement, leading Roma to sign Portuguese goalkeeper Rui Patrício (€11.5 million), Uruguayan defender Matías Viña (€13 million) and two strikers Uzbek Eldor Shomurodov (€17.5 million) and English Tammy Abraham (€40 million). To offset this spending, and to adhere to UEFA Financial Fair Play regulations, Mourinho sanctioned the departure of several players, including first-team players Juan Jesus, Edin Džeko, Pedro, and Javier Pastore, while also incorporating academy players into the first team such as Pietro Boer, Edoardo Bove and Nicola Zalewski, with the latter replacing Leonardo Spinazzola, after he ruptured his Achilles tendon during the UEFA Euro 2020.

On 19 August 2021, Mourinho managed his first match with Roma in a 2–1 away win against Trabzonspor in the first leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League play-off round. Three days later, he made his return to Serie A, after eleven years, managing a 3–1 home victory over Fiorentina at Stadio Olimpico. On 26 August, Mourinho secured qualification for the Europa Conference League, after overseeing a 3–0 home win against Trabzonspor in the play-off second leg. Mourinho reached 1,000 games as a manager in a 2–1 win against Sassuolo on 12 September 2021. On 26 September against Lazio, Roma lost 2–3, and Mourinho became the first Roma manager to lose his first Serie A Roma's derby since Luis Enrique in 2011. On 21 October, in a Conference League game against Bodø/Glimt, Roma suffered a humiliating 1–6 defeat, marking the first time that one of Mourinho's sides conceded 6 goals in a single match; Mourinho blamed the defeat on 'not having a very good squad'.

Ten days later against Milan, Mourinho suffered his first home defeat in league games in Italy; before this match, he was unbeaten in 43 consecutive games matches.

On 4 December, against Inter, Roma was defeated 3–0, marking was the first time in Mourinho's career that one of his teams was 3–0 down at half-time; he said after the match that Inter 'are stronger than Roma in normal conditions; in non-normal conditions, they are much stronger'. In order to reinforce the team for the second part of the season, in the winter transfer window, Roma signed Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sérgio Oliveira, both on loan from Arsenal and Porto, respectively. On 20 March 2022, Mourinho won his first Derby della Capitale after managing a 3–0 win over Lazio.

On 5 May, Mourinho guided Roma to their first European final since 1991 by beating Leicester City 2–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League, making him the first manager to reach the final of all three current major European competitions and the first manager to reach a major European final with four clubs. On 24 May, Mourinho won his first title with Roma by defeating Feyenoord in the 2022 UEFA Europa Conference League Final. This was Roma's first trophy in 11 years, making him the third manager – after Udo Lattek and Giovanni Trapattoni – to have won all three existing major European trophies, and the first to achieve the UEFA treble by winning the Champions League, UEFA Cup/Europa League, and Europa Conference League (in place of the defunct UEFA Cup Winners' Cup). It was also the first time a Serie A team won a continental championship since Inter Milan's 2009–10 UEFA Champions League, achieved under Mourinho himself as coach.

2022–23: Back-to-back European finals

thumb|230px|Mourinho with [[Associazione Sportiva Roma|Roma in 2023]]

In his second transfer window at Roma to prepare for the 2022–23 season, due to UEFA's Financial Fair Play regulations, the club only spent €7 million in the market with incomings players being signed by free transfers and loans, including Turkish defender Zeki Çelik from Lille, the Serbians Nemanja Matić and Mile Svilar, and Italian striker Andrea Belotti on free transfers, and Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum on loan from Paris Saint-Germain. The most notable signing of Roma's transfer window was the acquisition of Argentine forward Paulo Dybala on a free transfer after his contract with Juventus had expired.

The club began their league season with a 1–0 away win over Salernitana on 14 August 2022. Afterwards, Roma embarked on a four-game unbeaten streak, before suffering their first defeat of the season, losing 4–0 against Udinese, on 4 September, marking Mourinho's largest defeat in his Serie A's career and the third time that he had lost with a margin of four or more goals in a top-flight league match in his career. After the match, he said that he "preferred losing one match 4–0 than four matches 1–0". On 1 October, Roma recorded their first win against Inter since February 2017.

Prior to deadline day, following Wijnaldum's injury and the departures of Matías Viña and Nicolò Zaniolo, with the latter falling out with the club's hierarchy, Roma delved into the winter transfer market to sign Norwegian forward Ola Solbakken on a free transfer, Guinean midfielder Mady Camara on loan from Olympiacos and Spanish defender Diego Llorente on loan from Leeds United. On 1 February 2023, Roma were knocked out of the Coppa Italia, losing 2–1 at home to Cremonese. On 28 February, Roma was beaten again by Cremonese, the latter's first win in Serie A in 27 years. After drawing with Juventus earlier in the season, a 1–0 win over them at Stadio Olimpico on 5 March meant for the first time that Roma stayed unbeaten against Juventus in a Serie A season since 2003–04 campaign.

Despite a challenging season for Mourinho due to inconsistencies and injuries to key players, on 18 May he guided Roma to their second consecutive European final, beating former Real Madrid player Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen 1–0 on aggregate in the semi-finals of the Europa League, repeating the same feat during his time at Porto of reaching back-to-back European finals in 2003 and 2004. Following a 2–2 home draw to Salernitana in Serie A, Mourinho admitted that "Champions League qualification would be more than a miracle" for Roma, after disagreeing with Roma's sporting director Tiago Pinto comments that Champions League qualification was the main goal for Roma's season, adding that "we can write history and want to continue doing it, but qualifying for the Champions League when spending €7 million on the transfer market is more than history, more than a miracle. It's Jesus Christ coming to Rome and having a walk around the Vatican."

According to Corriere dello Sport, the relationship between Mourinho and Roma directors had turned frosty as the two parties had different views on the club's future, with Mourinho becoming increasingly frustrated over a lack of financial backing at Roma, due to the club's Financial Fair Play restrictions, leading to some disagreements over potential transfers, as he wanted reassurances from the Roma owners before committing his future to the club, amid reports that Mourinho was in advance negotiations to become Paris Saint-Germain's new manager.

In the Europa League final on 31 May, Mourinho managed his sixth European final, as Roma faced Sevilla, losing 4–2 on penalties after a 1–1 draw in extra-time. This was Mourinho's first loss in a European final. After the presentation of his runner-up medal, Mourinho gave his medal to a young Roma supporter. In the press conference after the match, Mourinho said that "he wanted to stay" at Roma but that he also "wanted conditions to give more", as he was "tired of acting as a manager, director of communications and complain about referee's decisions".

2023–24: Struggles and fourth consecutive early departure

In his third season, due to Roma's limited transfer budget due to Financial Fair Play regulations, following the same transfer policy as the previous season, various players were signed on free transfers or loans, including Argentine midfielder Leandro Paredes and Renato Sanches from Paris Saint-Germain, Houssem Aouar and Evan Ndicka on free transfers, and the loan of Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea, whom Mourinho had previously managed at Manchester United.

After enduring a difficult start to the season, with the club near the relegation zone, on 17 September, Mourinho registered the biggest win in Serie A since April 1961, when Roma thrashed Empoli 7–0 at home.

Following a negative string of results that left Roma in ninth place, five points behind the UEFA Champions League qualification spots, and two consecutive losses against Lazio in the 2023–24 Coppa Italia quarter-finals and AC Milan in the league, Roma announced on 16 January 2024 that they parted ways with Mourinho with immediate effect.

Fenerbahçe

On 1 June 2024, Turkish side Fenerbahçe confirmed that Mourinho had officially begun negotiations with the club over their head coach role. The following day, he was officially unveiled as the club's new manager and presented to the fans during a special ceremony at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium. During the team's 1–1 draw with Manchester United in the Europa League, he received a red card by protesting for a second-half penalty, which both the referee and VAR denied. The club finished second place in the Süper Lig, behind Galatasaray. In his first season, Mourinho failed to achieve a victory against the league's traditional rivals, suffering 2 defeats and 1 draw in 3 matches against Galatasaray, while also losing both encounters against Beşiktaş.

Before the beginning of the 2025–26 season, Mourinho expected himself to stay at Fenerbahçe for the season. This dismissal marked the seventh time Mourinho had been sacked by a club, rather than resigning or leaving by mutual consent.

Return to Benfica

thumb|right|Mourinho with Benfica in 2025

On 18 September 2025, Mourinho signed a two-year contract with Primeira Liga side Benfica, returning to the club after 25 years. He concluded the 2025–26 season undefeated in the league, yet his club finished third and qualified for the Europa League.

Manager profile

Tactics

Mourinho has been noted for his tactical prowess, game management, and adaptability to different situations. Teams under Mourinho's management typically demonstrate great defensive awareness as well as a quick transition ability through midfield, in particular down the flanks. A feature of his teams is playing with three or more central midfielders, as Mourinho has stressed midfield superiority as crucial in winning. As Porto manager, Mourinho employed a diamond 4–4–2 formation, with his midfield – consisting of Costinha or Pedro Mendes as defensive midfielder; Maniche and Dmitri Alenichev as wide central midfielders; and Deco on the tip – acting as a cohesive unit rather than a collection of individuals, providing Porto with midfield superiority while allowing the full-backs to move forward.

During his first two years at Chelsea, Mourinho employed a fluid 4–3–3 formation, having Claude Makélélé play the role of deep-lying midfielder. This gave Chelsea a three-against-two midfield advantage over most English teams playing 4–4–2 at the time, and helped Chelsea win Premier League titles. Mourinho explained:

<blockquote>Look, if I have a triangle in midfield – Claude Makélélé behind and two others just in front – I will always have an advantage against a pure 4–4–2 where the central midfielders are side by side. That's because I will always have an extra man. It starts with Makelele, who is between the lines. If nobody comes to him he can see the whole pitch and has time. If he gets closed down it means one of the two other central midfielders is open. If they are closed down and the other team's wingers come inside to help, it means there is space now for us on the flank, either for our own wingers or for our full-backs. There is nothing a pure 4–4–2 can do to stop things.</blockquote>

Andrei Shevchenko's signing forced Mourinho to switch to a 4–1–3–2 for 2006–07. At Inter, he won his first Serie A title alternating between a 4–3–3 and diamond, and in his second season, the signings of Samuel Eto'o, Diego Milito, Wesley Sneijder and Goran Pandev, along with Motta, enabled him to play 4–2–3–1, after using a 4–3–1–2 formation with little success in Europe, despite being effective domestically. In this formation, striker Eto'o was used out of position as a left-winger, and the 4–2–3–1 effectively became a pure 4–5–1 without the ball; the tactical switch proved to be effective as Inter went on to win the treble that season.

As Real Madrid manager from 2010 to 2013, Mourinho utilised an even more flexible 4–2–3–1 formation, with Xabi Alonso and Sami Khedira as holding midfielders, Mesut Özil as the attacking midfielder, and Cristiano Ronaldo and Ángel Di María flanking Karim Benzema as the lone striker. This formation allowed for rapid counterattacks, with the four attackers being able to play any of the four offensive positions. In the 2011–12 season, Madrid won La Liga nine points clear of second-placed Barcelona, breaking many records, including points collected (100) and goals scored (121).

Mourinho is praised for his quick reactions to a game's events. In a 2012–13 Champions League round of 16 encounter with Manchester United, and with Real Madrid losing 1–0 and facing elimination, United's Nani was sent off. Mourinho quickly introduced Luka Modrić and moved Sami Khedira to the right, where United had a numerical disadvantage due to Nani's dismissal. This forced United manager Ferguson to move Danny Welbeck from the midfield to that flank, thus freeing Xabi Alonso, and two quick goals turned the game in Madrid's favour. In the second leg of the 2009–10 Champions League semi-final against Barcelona, Motta's sending off led Mourinho to sit deep and narrow to defend their lead from the first leg away from home, while Barcelona were allowed possession. Mourinho used his left winger Eto'o as a makeshift left-sided attacking wing-back. Although Inter lost the second leg 1–0, they advanced to the final 3–2 on aggregate; Mourinho later described the match as "the most beautiful defeat of [his] life."

Mourinho is renowned for being well-informed about his next opponent and tactically outwitting other managers. In a 2004 Champions League knockout stage game between Porto and Ferguson's Manchester United, Mourinho had already asserted that United's weakness was on the flanks, especially on the left where Quinton Fortune was protected by Ryan Giggs. The central pairing of Maniche and Deco targeted that flank with their threaded passes, and Dmitri Alenichev wreaked havoc. He set up Benny McCarthy's equaliser in the first half, then with United focussed on defending the left, Porto switched to the other side, where McCarthy was able to beat Gary Neville and Wes Brown to score the winner.

Mourinho is acknowledged for his attention to detail, organisational planning and in-game communication. In a 2013–14 Champions League knockout game against Paris Saint-Germain, when Chelsea needed one goal within 10 minutes to progress, he played a risky 4–1–2–3 in the last quarter, which led to Demba Ba's winning goal. After the game, Mourinho said his team had worked on three alternative formations in training:

<blockquote>We trained yesterday with the three different systems we used, the one we started with, the one without [Frank] Lampard and finally the one with Demba and Fernando [Torres] in, and the players knew what to do.</blockquote> When Ba hit the winner, Mourinho darted down the touchline "in celebration", but afterwards he said he was running to tell Torres and Ba their positional instructions for the remaining six minutes. Mourinho instructed Ander Herrera to man-mark Eden Hazard. This tactic proved effective as Hazard, and Chelsea, were nullified for large portions. An untested strike partnership of Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard caused the Chelsea defence problems, with the former opening the scoring in the 7th minute. Mourinho's tactical organisation throughout the match drew praise.

Reception

Since the self proclamation in 2004, Mourinho is often nicknamed "The Special One". He is widely regarded by several players and coaches to be one of the best managers of his generation and one of the greatest ever managers. In 2010, Pep Guardiola described Mourinho as "probably the best coach in the world". Eto'o also praised Mourinho for his player management skills during their time at the club together, describing him as a "unique" head coach, who "...perfectly understood every player and the sentiments of the Inter fans. He knew how to combine these two things, he was perfect." Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has stated that Mourinho is the best manager he has ever worked for.

A plethora of Mourinho's tactical decisions have been met with criticism. Throughout his career, he has sometimes been accused of playing defensive, dull football to grind out results. In 2011, Morten Olsen concluded that he doesn't "like his persona or the way he plays football negatively". Additionally, Johan Cruyff stated that same year, "Mourinho is a negative coach. He only cares about the result and doesn't care much for good football." Mourinho, along with his compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo, is credited with inspiring changing fortunes of Portuguese football in the and .

Media attention and controversies

Chelsea

thumb|[[Arsène Wenger (red tie) and Mourinho (middle). Wenger was among the coaches with whom Mourinho has had confrontations.]]

Following a Champions League tie between Chelsea and Barcelona in March 2005, Mourinho accused referee Anders Frisk and Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard of breaking FIFA rules by having a meeting at half-time. Mourinho said that this biased the referee and caused him to send off Chelsea striker Didier Drogba in the second half. Frisk stated that Rijkaard had tried to speak to him but said that he had sent him away. The situation intensified when Frisk began to receive death threats from angered fans, causing the referee to retire prematurely. UEFA referees chief Volker Roth labelled Mourinho an "enemy of football", although UEFA distanced themselves from the comment. After an investigation of the incident, Mourinho was given a two-match touchline ban for his behaviour and both Chelsea and the manager were fined by UEFA, though the body confirmed that it did not hold Mourinho personally responsible for Frisk's retirement.

On 2 June 2005, Mourinho was fined £200,000 for his part in the meeting with then Arsenal full-back Ashley Cole in January of that year. The pair had met to discuss transfer terms while Cole was still under contract to Arsenal, which was in breach of the Premier League rules. His fine was later reduced to £75,000 after a hearing in August. Later that year, he labelled Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger "a voyeur" after being irked at what he saw as the latter's apparent obsession with Chelsea. Wenger was furious with the remark and considered taking legal action against Mourinho. The animosity died down, and the two managers made peace after Mourinho admitted that he regretted making the comment. In February 2014, Mourinho referred to Wenger as a "specialist in failure".

Inter Milan

Presentation

On 3 June 2008, during the press conference introducing him as new Inter manager, Mourinho spoke almost perfect Italian. When asked about how he would see players like Frank Lampard or Michael Essien in Italian Serie A, Mourinho realised that this was a way of making him speak about Chelsea players, something he had refused to do in previous questions. Consequently, he replied "" (Milanse Italian for "I'm not stupid!").

Lo Monaco comments

After Inter defeated Catania 2–1 on 13 September 2008, the opponents' CEO Pietro Lo Monaco resented the fact that Mourinho had underlined Inter's superiority in the match, especially by saying that he could have played in goal for Inter. Lo Monaco stated: "Mourinho andrebbe preso a bastonate sui denti" (Italian for "Mourinho should be beaten on his teeth"). Lo Monaco later clarified that he did not mean to encourage violence, but that it was just a way of saying that Mourinho should shut up. When asked about Lo Monaco's statements, Mourinho replied that he did not know him, saying that he only knew other Monacos such as the principality, or Bayern Munich, known in Italy as Bayern Monaco.

Comparison with Mancini

On 9 November 2008, after Inter defeated Udinese 1–0 via a late Julio Ricardo Cruz goal, Mourinho had a discussion with the journalist Mario Sconcerti. As the Portuguese manager had underlined on the day before that he was collecting more points during his first Serie A campaign with Inter compared to Roberto Mancini's first season, basically with the aim of defending his work, which media considered below expectations, Sconcerti invited Mourinho to avoid comparisons with the Italian manager, who could not respond directly. An annoyed Mourinho replied to Sconcerti asking for honest comparisons and emphasising once again that he was doing better than Mancini.

Wild celebration against Siena

On 20 December 2008, after Maicon scored the late winning goal in a difficult away match against Siena, which ended 2–1, Mourinho wildly ran in front of the tiers reserved to Inter supporters to celebrate, hugging the Brazilian himself. In the post-match interview, the journalist Maurizio Pistocchi showed his surprise for Mourinho's behaviour, which he considered exaggerated and possibly a lack of respect to Siena supporters. The Portuguese manager replied that he was used to that, recalling his iconic celebration in Old Trafford in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Manchester United in 2004, when his team eventually won.

Statement about the 2006 Scudetto

During the halftime of a January 2009 match against Atalanta, Mourinho was quoted as saying: "The first Scudetto was given to you in the secretariat [referencing the controversial 2005–06 Serie A title awarded to third-placed Inter in the aftermath of the Calciopoli scandal], the second you won it because there was no one there [to compete against], the third [you won it] at the last minute. You are a shitty team." Although Mourinho justified himself by stating that "[s]ometimes you need to tell lies to stimulate the players, to piss them off", he admitted having said the statement.

Zeru tituli conference

During a press conference on 3 March 2009, Mourinho said that Milan and Roma would end the season with no honours and alleged that Juventus had collected a lot of points thanks to referees' mistakes; he also accused Italian sport journalists of "intellectual prostitution" on their behalf, as they were focusing on a possible mistake regarding a penalty conceded to Inter against Roma instead of talking about the failures of Inter's rivals.

His rant promptly became popular in Italy, especially regarding the "zero titles" quote used by Mourinho, and incorrectly pronounced by him as zeru tituli (in correct Italian it would have been zero titoli), which was later extensively referred to by football journalists in Italy. It also became the title's catchphrase used by fans to celebrate Inter's 17th Scudetto later that season. The catchphrase was even used by Nike to present the celebration shirts for Inter's Serie A title. After the Coppa Italia final in May, fans of Roma's cross-town rivals Lazio, the new Coppa Italia winners, quoted Mourinho's "zeru tituli" statement by wearing shirts with Io campione, tu zero titoli ("I'm a champion, you have no honours") on them.

During the same press conference, Mourinho also directly attacked Roma manager Luciano Spalletti and Juventus manager Claudio Ranieri: the former as he was used to continuously releasing interviews, in contrast with Mourinho, who disliked that in spite of the fact that he was considered good at it; the latter as he rejected Mourinho's claims that his team had taken advantage of referees' mistakes. Mourinho said that the single time Inter benefitted was an offside goal against Siena.

Italy national team representatives

Mourinho once again sparked controversy in the summer with his argument with Italy national team coach Marcello Lippi. Lippi predicted that Juventus would win the scudetto in the 2009–10 season, which Mourinho viewed as a disrespectful statement to Inter coming from a national team manager. Lippi responded by saying that it was just a prediction.

After the row with Lippi, he clashed with Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro over Davide Santon's place in the Inter squad. Cannavaro had said that Santon might have to leave Inter to get regular playing time to gain selection for Italy in the upcoming World Cup. Mourinho responded by saying that Cannavaro was acting like "a coach, a sporting director or a president".

Incident with Ramazzotti

After Inter drew 1–1 with Atalanta on 13 December 2009, Mourinho attacked the Corriere della Sera journalist Andrea Ramazzotti, who was not allowed to stay near Inter bus according to the Portuguese manager. Ramazzotti had obtained the authorization from both Inter and Atalanta press offices to attend players' interviews in that spot. Allegedly, Mourinho not only insulted the journalist but also grabbed him, thus causing controversy. A lot of colleagues sided with Ramazzotti, defending the general right to report news without fearing to be attacked and considering the incident very serious. Subsequently, Inter president Massimo Moratti phoned Ramazzotti in order to apologise to him. Furthermore, the Federal Prosecutor referred Mourinho "for having said, towards the sports journalist Andrea Ramazzotti, offensive remarks as well as for having grabbed his forearms". Inter was also referred for strict liability.

A few days after, Mourinho confronted the journalists in the press conference preceding the Coppa Italia match against Livorno. The Inter manager explained his behaviour and denied he had physically assaulted Ramazzotti, admitting he had said offensive words he was not proud of. In addition, Mourinho admired the solidarity of Ramazzotti's colleagues and said that he was not supposed to apologize in public as the situation had not happened in public, trying to play down the incident itself.

Two draws in a row

After two away draws in a row against Parma (1–1 on 10 February 2010) and Napoli (0–0 on 14 February), Mourinho defended Inter's performances, stating that he was satisfied with collecting two more points on the road to the league title, despite those results not being positive themselves. In particular, the Inter manager used some sharp words regarding Walter Mazzarri and Aurelio De Laurentiis, Napoli's respective manager and president.

Handcuffs gesture

During the Serie A game against Sampdoria on 22 February 2010, which ended in a 0–0 draw, with two Inter players being sent off in the first half, Mourinho was disappointed by Paolo Tagliavento's refereeing. At the end of the first half, the Inter manager made a handcuffs gesture towards a camera which was considered by the Italian Football Federation as violent and critical of the refereeing performance, and caused a three-game ban against Mourinho. Further complaining happened in the second half, when the referee denied Inter a penalty, booking Samuel Eto'o for diving instead, causing Mourinho to laugh ironically as a sign of complaint. All the supporters in San Siro sided with Mourinho with a pañolada, a very unusual form of protest in Italy.

Parames statement

In February 2010, both Juventus manager Claudio Ranieri and Napoli equivalent Walter Mazzarri released some comments critical of Mourinho: the former said that it was too easy to switch from Chelsea under Roman Abramovich to Massimo Moratti at Inter; the latter stated that he had won more than Mourinho in proportion. Despite Moratti's decision to order a press blackout for Inter following controversial refereeing decisions, Mourinho managed to reply to those managers through his spokesman Eladio Parames.

Real Madrid

thumb|Mourinho was lampooned in Spain following the incident where, as Real Madrid coach, he poked then [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona assistant coach Tito Vilanova in the eye.]]

In a 2010–11 Champions League match at Ajax in November 2010, late in the match when Real Madrid were leading 4–0, two Real Madrid players received late second yellow cards related to time-wasting. The result of this meant they were suspended for the final group match even though Madrid would come first in the group, but would benefit by entering the round of 16 without any accumulated yellow cards. It was suggested after an investigation by UEFA that this was a deliberate ploy under Mourinho's instruction via two players in a substitution. As a result, UEFA charged Mourinho along with the four related players with improper conduct regarding the dismissals. Although Mourinho denied the allegations, he was fined £33,500 and received a one-match Champions League ban.

On 17 August 2011, in the final of the 2011 Supercopa de España, Mourinho was seen gouging the eye of Barcelona's assistant coach Tito Vilanova during a brawl at the end of the game. After the game, Mourinho did not comment on the incident except to claim that he did not know who "Pito" Vilanova was, with "pito" being Spanish slang for penis.

Manchester United

The Football Heritage speech was made by Mourinho on 16 March 2018, during a press conference after his Manchester United side lost to Sevilla in the UEFA Champions League. The 2–1 loss was the first time that Manchester United lost to Sevilla in European competition. During his 12-minute speech, Mourinho made various remarks and criticised the management of Manchester United, implying that a club's success stems from the calibre of players they sign. Mourinho defended his record of Champions League success in a subsequent press conference before an FA Cup tie against Brighton & Hove Albion.

On 23 October 2016, while Mourinho's Manchester United was trailing 4–0 against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte waved up the home crowd, urging them to make more noise to support the team. At the end of the match, Mourinho shook Conte's hand and whispered into his ear, with media reports claiming Mourinho had accused Conte of trying to humiliate United with his actions. Both managers refused to confirm or deny the report, but Conte disputed claims that he was trying to antagonise Mourinho. Chelsea midfielder Pedro supported Conte, claiming Mourinho's reaction was out of context. The two managers continued to trade insults in January 2018, with Conte calling Mourinho "a little man".

Roma

thumb|A graffiti in honour of Jose Mourinho in the streets of Rome

On 26 September 2021, after a loss to Lazio, Mourinho blamed the VAR and the referee for the result. On 24 October, in a goalless draw against Napoli, Mourinho was sent off due to frequent protests against the referee. On 31 October against Milan, the Giallorossi coach was fined €10,000 for his "ironic and disrespectful" conduct towards the match official after the final whistle.

On first of December, Roma lost an away game against Bologna. Angry about the referee's decisions, Mourinho confronted him after the match to discuss the match incidents. After the match, Mourinho gave a quick press statement in which he advised Roma's attacker Nicolò Zaniolo to leave Serie A, hinting on presumed unfair treatment by the referees, Mourinho himself was given a yellow card for frequent protests.

On 5 February 2022, the referee disallowed a final minute goal for Roma against Genoa due to a supposed foul by Tammy Abraham, Mourinho said about the incident "If that is a foul, the game is not the same. You have to change the name of football." On 19 February against Hellas Verona, Mourinho was red-carded again after kicking the ball and making a telephone gesture toward the referee. Mourinho reportedly told the referee "Juventus sent you". He was given a two-match touchline ban by the Italian FA and fined 20,000 Euros following the incident.

On 28 February 2023, Mourinho got yet another red card two minutes into the second half during a 2–1 loss to Cremonese, where he was supposedly spoken to and provoked by the fourth official in a disrespectful manner, which resulted in him having the reaction that had him penalised. He said he went to find the official after the game, but he "appears to have forgotten [what he said]". He was given a two-game ban and fined 10,000 euros for the incident.

Fenerbahçe

On 8 November 2024, Mourinho received a 1 game suspension for comments made at a press conference regarding the Süper Lig. Mourinho was quoted attacking the league by asking "Nobody abroad wants to watch the Turkish league. Who wants to watch this Turkish league abroad?” he said. “Why should they see this? It’s too grey, it’s too dark, smells bad." During the press conference, Mourinho also claimed that referees in Turkey are biased, saying that "It’s more difficult because we play against our opponents…but we play against the system, and to play against the system is the most difficult thing."

On 25 February 2025, following a 0–0 draw between Mourinho's Fenerbahçe and rival Galatasaray, Galatasaray announced that they had initiated criminal proceedings against comments they claimed to be racist statements. During the post-game press conference, Mourinho had praised Slovenian head referee Slavko Vinčić, stating that he told a Turkish referee "If you are the referee...would be a disaster. When I say him, I say the general tendency." Later in the conference, he praised Vinčić for an incident which occurred involving centre back Yusuf Akçiçek; "I have to thank the referee because with a Turkish referee after the big dive and the first minute and their bench jumping like monkeys on top of the kids." After the incident, former professionals such as Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and William Gallas voiced their support for Mourinho on their social media accounts. Mourinho received 4 games suspension and £35,000 fine for his comments about Turkish referees, which had been cut to 2 games and £12,200 fine.

On 2 April 2025, Mourinho grabbed the nose of Galatasaray's manager Okan Buruk after Fenerbahçe lost 2–1 in the quarter-final at Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in Istanbul.

Benfica

After the first leg of Benfica's Champions League knockout phase play-off with Real Madrid, during which Real forward Vinícius Júnior was allegedly racially abused by Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni, Mourinho criticised Vinícius for his exuberant celebration of his winning goal, describing it as "stupid", and appeared to blame him for previous incidents of racism he had endured, stating that "There is something wrong because it happens in every stadium... A stadium where Vinícius plays, something happens, always". In addition, when asked what he had said to Vinícius in a conversation during the match, he said that "I told him the biggest person in the history of this club was Black (referring to Eusébio)... This club, the last thing that it is, is racist". Mourinho was criticised for his comments by the anti-racist football campaign group Kick It Out, who described them as gaslighting, and former Real Madrid midfielder Clarence Seedorf, who suggested that "He’s saying (racist abuse is) OK when Vinícius provokes you... and I think that is very wrong". In 2019, he began hosting a show on the RT network called On the Touchline with José Mourinho which covered the 2019 UEFA Champions League. In August 2019, Mourinho joined UK broadcaster Sky Sports as a pundit on their Premier League coverage.

In collaboration with DAZN, in 2019 Mourinho appeared in The Making Of series, a 3 part documentary which relives the significant games that helped define football's greatest modern icons. Mourinho was involved in the 2020 Amazon Prime sports docuseries All or Nothing: Tottenham Hotspur (narrated by Tom Hardy) during his spell managing the club.

In October 2022, Mourinho's famous phrase "park the bus" was added to the Oxford English Dictionary. Mourinho had used this phrase to describe Tottenham Hotspur's negative, defensive tactics following a 0–0 draw with his Chelsea side in 2004, stating "they brought the bus and left the bus in front of the goal as we say in my country".

Personal life

thumb|left|upright|Mourinho with his children (José Jr. and Matilde) in 2007

Mourinho met his wife Matilde "Tami" Faria, born into a wealthy family in Portuguese Angola during the Angolan War of Independence and repatriated after the decolonisation, when they were teenagers in Setúbal, Portugal, and the couple married in 1989. Their first child, daughter Matilde, was born in 1996 and they had their first son, José Mário Jr four years later. Mourinho celebrated his daughter's wedding to the joint venture partner of Winkworth CEO's younger brother in 2024 at the family estate of Quinta de Catralvos in Azeitão. Mourinho, whilst dedicated to football, describes his family as the centre of his life and has said that the "most important thing is my family and being a good father." Since his appointment in 2014, he acts as a Global Ambassador of the United Nations' World Food Programme. His political views, which he does not publicly express, are believed by journalists to be strongly right-wing. Mourinho is a paternal cousin of the Socialist Party politician and former Portuguese secretary of state , whose political commitments he said he did not share.

thumb|upright|Waxwork of Mourinho at [[Madame Tussauds, London]]

Widely known for his strong personality, refined dress sense, and quirky comments at press conferences, Mourinho has experienced fame outside of football circles, featuring in European advertisement campaigns for Samsung, American Express, Braun, Jaguar and Adidas, amongst others. An unauthorised biography of Mourinho by journalist , titled O Vencedor – De Setúbal a Stamford Bridge (2004; English translation as Mourinho: The True Story, 2005), was a best seller in Portugal. Mourinho unsuccessfully attempted to prevent the book from being published. An official biography by Luís Lourenço, the president of Vitória de Setúbal in 2008–09, who completed a thesis on Mourinho's leadership at the Catholic University of Portugal, appeared in 2010 under the title Mourinho, a Descoberta Guiada, with prefaces from Manuel Sérgio for the Portuguese edition and from the CEO of the Portuguese healthcare company Isabel Vaz for the Brazilian edition; Lourenço had already published José Mourinho: Made in Portugal in the UK in 2004.

Mourinho was part of an unusual event in May 2007 when he was arrested for preventing animal welfare officials from putting his dog into quarantine. The dog had not been sufficiently inoculated but the situation was resolved after it was returned to Portugal and Mourinho received a police caution.

Mourinho is a Roman Catholic, saying, "I believe totally, clearly. Every day I pray; every day I speak with Him. I don't go to the church every day, not even every week. I go when I feel I need to. And when I'm in Portugal, I always go." In April 2022, he expanded upon his faith and its relationship with his career, proclaiming: "People think football is my life, but no. There are more important things, including the relationship with God. For me, God is love." Apart from his native Portuguese, Mourinho speaks Spanish, Italian, French, Catalan and English to varying degrees of fluency. Mourinho was chosen to voice Pope Francis in a Vatican-approved Portuguese animated film marking the 2017 centenary of the apparition of Our Lady of Fátima.

On 23 March 2009, Mourinho was awarded a doctorate honoris causa degree by the Technical University of Lisbon for his accomplishments in football. In December 2011, he was named "Rockstar of the Year" by the Spanish Rolling Stone magazine.

Managerial statistics

{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center

|+ Managerial record by team and tenure

|-

!rowspan=2|Team

!rowspan=2|From

!rowspan=2|To

!colspan=8|Record

!rowspan=2|PPM

!rowspan=2|

|-

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

|-

|align=left| Benfica

|align=left|20 September 2000

|align=left|5 December 2000

|align=left|1.80

|

|-

|align=left| União de Leiria

|align=left|1 July 2001

|align=left|23 January 2002

|align=left|1.70

|

|-

|align=left| Porto

|align=left|23 January 2002

|align=left|2 June 2004

|align=left|2.32

|

|-

|align=left| Chelsea

|align=left|2 June 2004

|align=left|20 September 2007

|align=left|2.22

|

|-

|align=left| Roma

|align=left|1 July 2021

|align=left|16 January 2024

|align=left|1.70

| style="text-align:center" |

  • Primeira Liga: 2002–03, 2003–04
  • Taça de Portugal: 2002–03
  • Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2003
  • UEFA Champions League: 2003–04
  • UEFA Cup: 2002–03

Chelsea

  • Premier League: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2014–15
  • FA Cup: 2006–07
  • FIFA World Coach of the Year: 2010
  • IFFHS World's Best Club Coach: 2004, 2005,
  • Premier League Manager of the Season: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2014–15
  • Serie A Coach of the Year: 2008–09, 2009–10
  • Serie A Coach of the Month: August 2022
  • Panchina d'Oro: 2009–10
  • Miguel Muñoz Trophy: 2010–11, 2011–12
  • UEFA Manager of the Year: 2002–03, 2003–04 2005,
  • France Football 13th Greatest Manager of All time: 2019
  • BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award: 2005
  • La Gazzetta dello Sport Man of the Year: 2010
  • International Sports Press Association Best Manager in the World: 2010
  • Prémio Prestígio Fernando Soromenho: 2012
  • Football Extravaganza's League of Legends (2011)
  • Globe Soccer Awards Best Coach of the Year: 2012
  • Globe Soccer Awards Best Media Attraction in Football: 2012
  • Portuguese Coach of the Century: 2015 7 April 2018 (Man.City 2–3 Man.Utd)
  • Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2022

Others

  • Grand Officer of the Order of Prince Henry
  • Doctor Honoris causa – for his accomplishments in football from Lisbon Technical University
  • Youngest manager to reach 100 Champions League games (49 years 12 days)
  • Longest football unbeaten home run by a manager (9 years)