Brazilian giants Botafogo have once again turned to a Portuguese as head coach, with Franclim Carvalho handed only his second senior role at the Rio de Janeiro side.
Botafogo recently dispensed with the services of ex-Porto manager Martín Anselmi after just three months in the job. The club have been renowned for short managerial tenures, with Anselmi the sixth permanent boss across the last four years, lasting just 18 matches after his December appointment.
Carvalho is familiar with the club, having worked as Artur Jorge’s assistant during Botafogo’s historic Brasileirão and Copa Libertadores double winning campaign of 2024. When Jorge was recently hired by fellow Brazilian outfit Cruzeiro, Carvalho was close to joining Jorge’s staff once more, but has been tempted by the offer of a no1 role with Botafogo.
At 39 years of age, Carvalho already has strong experience as a no2, assisting Jorge at Sporting Braga, Botafogo and Al-Rayyan in Qatar. His previous experience as a head coach was with B SAD back in 2022, leading the Almada club for just 18 matches. A former lower league winger who abandoned his career at 24, Carvalho worked in the youth ranks at Académica and Braga earlier in his career.
Carvalho becomes the fifth Portuguese to coach Botafogo in the last four years. Luís Castro is credited with helping the revival of the club in 2022, after which he was followed by Bruno Lage, Artur Jorge and Renato Paiva. Jorge conquered South America, while Paiva led Botafogo to an historic victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup, before being fired just weeks later.
Botafogo have struggled so far in the Brazilian league under Anselmi, losing five of their opening eight matches and occupying 12th place in the standings. Carvalho’s first match in charge will be a trip to Rio de Janeiro rivals Vasco da Gama on Saturday evening.
Artur Jorge, meanwhile, enjoyed a sensational debut match in charge of Cruzeiro. Having taken charge with the Belo Horizonte club winless from their first eight matches of the 2026 campaign, Jorge led Cruzeiro to a resounding 3-0 victory over Vitória on Monday evening.
