With his contract as a Vasco player ending at the end of last year, Leo Matos announced his retirement to take on a new role: he will soon complete a month as a member of the club’s football department.
At the age of 36, Leo went from the lawn to the spreadsheets in the blink of an eye. On November 6, he was Vasco’s starting right-back in the victory over Ituano, in the last round of Serie B, a result that guaranteed promotion. On January 3, he actually started in his new position.
But, despite the sudden change, he prepared a lot. Last year, Leo Matos completed the Sports Management course at the Universidade do Futebol and graduated as a Football Executive at the CBF Academy.
At Vasco, his role still doesn’t have a name, but he has done a little of everything: from helping with the logistics of training and games to the relationship with the players who, until yesterday, were his teammates.
The former player fits into the organization chart of general football management, which is managed on a day-to-day basis by operations and logistics manager Fabiano Lunz and supervisor Clauber Rocha. “It’s the guys who carry the club, who make the gears turn”, as employees define. Leo is now Clauber’s right hand man at Vasco.
