Ney Franco · Biography

In 2006, Flamengo hired a coach who was barely known outside Minas Gerais, taking him from Ipatinga, the previous year’s state champions. Ney Franco da Silveira Júnior, born on 22 July 1966 in Vargem Alegre, then a district of Caratinga, won the 2006 Copa do Brasil in his first season in Rio de Janeiro. That trophy started a career of two decades with major Brazilian clubs, the Brazil under-20 team and, later, Jordanian football.

Education and youth coaching

A physical education graduate of the Federal University of Viçosa, Ney Franco began his career away from the spotlight, working with young players. He spent three years in Atlético Mineiro’s youth system and eleven in Cruzeiro’s, the two strongest clubs in Belo Horizonte. His first job in charge of a professional squad came in 2004 at Ipatinga, a club from the Vale do Aço region. In 2005 the team won the Campeonato Mineiro, the title that made his name known across the country.

Flamengo, Atlético Paranaense and Botafogo

At Flamengo, after the 2006 Copa do Brasil, he added the Taça Guanabara and the Campeonato Carioca in 2007. He left that year for Atlético Paranaense, where he worked from 2007 to 2008. He then coached Botafogo from 2008 to 2009 and won the 2009 Taça Guanabara with them. Later in 2009 he joined Coritiba, and in 2010 he led them to the Campeonato Paranaense and the Brazilian Série B title, which took the club back to the top flight.

Brazil under-20s

In 2010 the Brazilian Football Confederation gave him the under-20 team. In 2011 Brazil won the South American U-20 Championship in Peru, which secured a place at the London 2012 Olympic tournament. The same year brought the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia, where Brazil beat Portugal 3-2 after extra time in the final. In 2012 he added the Mediterranean International Cup, the Eight Nations Tournament and an international four-team tournament. He finished the spell with 19 matches: 12 wins, 5 draws and 2 defeats.

São Paulo and the Copa Sudamericana

In 2012 he left the national setup to take over São Paulo. In December of that year the club won the 2012 Copa Sudamericana, with a final against Argentina’s Tigre. In 2013, while still in charge in São Paulo, he even recorded a song, “Tava na Beira do Caos”. Elimination from the 2013 Copa Libertadores set off a crisis, and in July 2013, a year after his arrival, São Paulo dismissed him.

From 2013 to 2021

The following years were a run of short spells. He coached Vitória from 2013 until May 2014 and returned to Flamengo in 2014, until his dismissal on 23 July that year. In 2015 he went back to Coritiba, who let him go on 3 November with the side in the relegation zone. In 2017 he spent two months at Sport, from 27 March to 25 May. He coached Goiás in 2018 and Chapecoense from March to July 2019, a spell of 18 matches. From 7 August 2019 to 20 August 2020 he had a second spell at Goiás. In September 2020 he took over Cruzeiro in Série B and was sacked on 11 October. In 2021 he led CSA, from Alagoas, for 12 matches between 9 July and 30 August.

Joinville, ABC and Jordan

After almost three years without a club, he took charge of Joinville for the 2024 Copa Santa Catarina. At the start of 2025 he coached ABC of Natal: 9 matches, with 5 wins, 3 draws and one defeat. He left after the club was knocked out of the Copa do Brasil by Olaria in February 2025. In December 2025 he was named head coach of Al-Hussein of Irbid, Jordanian league champions in 2023-24 and 2024-25, replacing the Portuguese coach Quim Machado.