Luís Filipe Vieira
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Luís Filipe Vieira (full name Luís Filipe Ferreira Vieira), born 22 June 1949, is the chairman of Portuguese sports club Sport Lisboa e Benfica. He was previously chairman of Alverca FC.
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[edit] Early years and the Circus
Vieira left home arround the age of 21, because of his his stepfather, after fighting with him for insulting comments about him to his mother "he allways had a problem with my ears and my mustache, one time we were having dinner and he told my mother that I looked like Miguel Esteves Cardoso with Nigel Mansel's mustache, I just flipped out and bit his arm, we had this major fight which ended up with me breakig his pelvis with a golf club". After leaving his home he started working in several jobs but kept being fired or quitting for low payments.That changed when he went to work for a French circus. He was made a working slave by the circus manager and had a very bad time around there, doing all kind of jobs and being kept in an animal cage. "He said there was money inside the cage, and when I went inside he locked me in there". Vieira worked mainly as a clown and when he misbehaved or refused orders he got punished in the most unhuman ways. "I remember one time that Mr. Blanchet, told me to get him a wig made of hair from a woman 100% Mongolian. I was unable to do it obviously, but for him as long as monglian woman exist I wouldn't be a good worker if I didn't get one, he asked me for impossible things and then punished me for not doing them. Punishments went from taking a taxi for long distances without money, to being caged with the animal and share their food and toilet". In 1990,while cleaning Mr.Blanchet office, he found the spare key to his Ferrari on the toilet mixed with his excrement. He closed his eyes,took it and just ran off, "I have no idea how that key got there, but I believe God wanted me out of that misery and paid me with a brand new Ferrari which I sold and invested the money". Vieira left without anything and so, he needed money, he sold the car in the black market and bought a soccer player which he later sold for double the money, he had become a soccer businessman and accomplished one of his dreams, to work in the soccer business.
[edit] Chairmanship of Alverca FC
Vieira was the president of Alverca FC for a couple of years, at a time when the Angolan player Pedro Mantorras was a rising young star at the Alverca side, he sold the player to his later team SL Benfica on the biggest transfer between portuguese clubs for almost 5 million Euros.There are rumours that the money never reached Alverca, but went to Vieira's pockets instead, since the small club closed a few years later due to financial problems when the transfer money should allow the club to survive for at least 10 years, besides, no register of the transfer was ever found.
[edit] Chairmanship of SL Benfica
In November third of 2003 he was elected by Benfica's associate members the 33rd President of the club. He was committed to bring SL Benfica back to its European glory. In the 2004-05 football season the club won the SuperLiga, with the Italian Giovanni Trapattoni as a coach. In the 2005-06 SuperLiga season, he hired Ronald Koeman, a Dutch international and former Ajax coach as Manager. He guided SL Benfica to the Quarter-Finals of the UEFA Champion's league with SL Benfica manager Ronald Koeman after knocking out the European championship league holders Liverpool FC. He also sent scouts to Australia. He also set up a soccer school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Under his management SL Benfica reached over 150,000 associate members in 2006, the cycling team was reactivated, women's triathlon star Vanessa Fernandes signed with the club, and the SL Benfica B reserve football team was closed. For the 2006-07 season, Benfica's chairman Vieira, hired the Portuguese manager Fernando Santos as the new coach for the football team. The team signed also with veteran footballer Rui Costa, who wished back to its loved Benfica since a long time ago after many years playing in the Italian Serie A. Vieira is also responsible for player trades and loans for the club, a very important part in the modern professional sports financial management.
[edit] Benfica's Youth
Luis Filipe Vieira is also active in Benfica's youth squad, Vieira has played a major roll in development with the Signing of home grown talent such as Nicolas Canales, Bijou Davidson,Kaz Patafta and many others. However, it hasn't showed up any results.
[edit] Quotes
- We might be dumb, but we're not stupid.
- I like to use lipstick sometimes.
- I worked as a clown on a circus, it was a very hard time for me. I was underpaid while my boss was driving a Ferrari, and was allways wearing fancy clothes. Me and the guy in the cage next to me, really hated that.I would say those are the reasons for my humblenss.(When asked about his casual appearence).
- My mother, god rest her soul, allways told me, "Stop picking your nose", and i've lived my life based on her advice, i believe that's what got me where I am now.
- They played better, but we buy referees better. (When he won his first League title)
