Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo (; 9 August 1931 – 5 January 2024) was a Brazilian professional football player, coordinator and manager, who played as a forward.
Zagallo holds the record for FIFA World Cup titles in general with four titles in total. He also holds the record for World Cup finals with five participations. He was the first person to win the World Cup as both a manager and as a player, winning the competition in 1958 and 1962 as a player and in 1970 as manager. In addition, he won the 1994 FIFA World Cup as assistant manager. Zagallo also coached Brazil in 1974 (finishing fourth) and in 1998 (finishing as runners-up) and was a technical assistant in 2006. He was the first of three men, along with Germany's Franz Beckenbauer (who coincidentally died two days after Zagallo) and France's Didier Deschamps to have won the World Cup as a player and as a manager, and the only one who had done each more than once.
In 1992, Zagallo received the FIFA Order of Merit, the highest honour awarded by FIFA, for his contributions to football. He was named the ninth greatest manager of all time by World Soccer Magazine in 2013. He was the last surviving Brazilian player who participated in the 1958 World Cup final, and his death left Amarildo as the last surviving Brazilian player of the 1962 final.
Early life
Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo was born in Atalaia in the state of Alagoas, on 9 August 1931. He later moved to Rio de Janeiro with his family when he was still eight months old. As a young man, he committed to complete his military service in the Brazilian Army; he was notably deployed at the Maracanã Stadium when Uruguay defeated Brazil in the 1950 World Cup decisive match.
Playing career
left|thumb|upright=0.7|Zagallo during his playing spell at [[Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas|Botafogo]]Zagallo started his football career in the youth sector of América, having turned professional and established himself within the Mengão<nowiki/>'s first team, he helped the club win three consecutive titles in the Campeonato Carioca between 1953 and 1955. and eventually became a part of a team that included several other regular starters of the Brazilian national team, such as Garrincha, Nilton Santos and Didi.
In 1958, he was included by manager Vicente Feola in the Brazilian squad for the FIFA World Cup in Sweden:
He was also a part of the squad that won the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile,
Due to his characteristics and his skills, he received the nickname Formiguinha ("Little Ant" in Portuguese).
He was nicknamed The Professor by his players throughout his coaching career, due to his tactical awareness and commanding presence on the bench, at the age of 38, he also became the second youngest coach to win the aforementioned title, behind only Alberto Suppici.
In 1989, Zagallo was hired by the United Arab Emirates for their qualification campaign for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. He led the amateurs to an unexpected first qualification to the tournament, but left for Vasco da Gama days before the World Cup began and was replaced by Carlos Alberto Parreira.
He then returned to the Brazilian national team as a coordinator and assistant coach, and helped the side win the 1994 FIFA World Cup while serving in those roles. On 20 November, in his only game, the team won 3–2 in a friendly away to South Korea.
Personal life
thumb|Zagallo in 2008
Zagallo married Alcina de Castro on 13 January 1955 at the Church of Capuchins in Rio de Janeiro. They remained together until de Castro's death on 5 November 2012. Mário and Alcina had four children. He was a practicing Catholic.
Zagallo's surname was spelled Zagalo for most of his career, including by himself, until he told a reporter in the 1990s that his surname on his birth certificate was Zagallo. He was also the only Brazilian World Cup-winning forward to be known by his surname. He was of Lebanese descent.
In July 2022, Zagallo was admitted to hospital with a respiratory infection. In August 2023, he was hospitalized for 22 days due to a urinary infection. Following a brief hospitalization in Rio de Janeiro, he died on 5 January 2024 due to multiple organ failure, resulting from the exacerbation of various pre-existing comorbidities. Zagallo was aged 92.
Managerial statistics
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|+ Managerial record by team and tenure
|-
!rowspan="2"|Team
!rowspan="2"|From
!rowspan="2"|To
!colspan="7"|Record
|-
!
!
!
!
!
|-
|align=left|Botafogo
|align=left|16 August 1966
|align=left|18 July 1970
|-
|align=left|Brazil
|align=left|19 September 1967
|align=left|6 July 1974
|-
|align=left|Fluminense
|align=left|5 September 1971
|align=left|17 March 1972
|-
|align=left|Flamengo
|align=left|24 June 1972
|align=left|13 November 1974
|-
|align=left|Botafogo
|align=left|1975
|align=left|December 1975
|-
|align=left|Kuwait
|align=left|5 February 1976
|align=left|23 March 1978
|-
|align=left|Botafogo
|align=left|14 September 1978
|align=left|31 December 1978
|-
|align=left|Al-Hilal
|align=left|5 January 1979
|align=left|26 December 1979
|-
|align=left|Vasco da Gama
|align=left|4 October 1980
|align=left|28 May 1981
|-
|align=left|Saudi Arabia
|align=left|23 February 1981
|align=left|31 March 1984
|-
|align=left|Flamengo
|align=left|18 December 1984
|align=left|31 August 1985
|-
|align=left|Botafogo
|align=left|29 December 1986
|align=left|27 November 1987
|-
|align=left|Bangu
|align=left|3 November 1988
|align=left|27 June 1989
|-
|align=left|United Arab Emirates
|align=left|2 September 1989
|align=left|12 June 1990
|-
|align=left|Vasco da Gama
|align=left|2 October 1990
|align=left|16 May 1991
|-
|align=left|Portuguesa
|align=left|18 July 1999
|align=left|13 October 2000
|-
|align=left|Flamengo
|align=left|3 March 2001
|align=left|31 December 2001
|-
!colspan=3|Total
|}
Honours
Player
Flamengo
- Rio de Janeiro State Championship: 1953, 1954, 1955
Flamengo
- Copa dos Campeões: 2001
- Rio de Janeiro State Championship: 1972, 2001
Brazil
- FIFA World Cup: 1970
Coordinator
Brazil
- FIFA World Cup: 1994
- FourFourTwo 27th Greatest Manager of All Time: 2020
See also
- List of FIFA World Cup records and statistics in coaching
- List of Brazil national football team managers
References
External links
!colspan="3" style="background:#C1D8FF;"| World Cup–winners status
|-
|-
!colspan="3" style="background:#C1D8FF;"| World Cup Finals