Vipers SC has appointed Brazilian-Portuguese coach Jose Esdras Costa Lopez. Lopez, aged 65, recently joined the team as an assistant coach under a two-year employment contract and began his duties last week. He becomes the second Brazilian coach alongside head coach Leonardo Martins Neiva, known as Leo Neiva.
Lopez’s extensive coaching experience dates back to the late 1980s when he served as the head coach of Sao Cristovao Futebol e Regatas in Brazil from 1987 to 1990. Throughout his career, he held coaching positions at various clubs, including SC Rucife, Fluminense FC, America FC, Goias SC, SC Bahia, Caldense SC, Mogi Mirim ES, Verdy Kawzaki in Japan, Al Wasl Club in the UAE, Al Saad in Qatar, and Club Alianza Lima in Peru.
Additionally, Lopez had coaching roles at Uberaba SC, Botafogo Football de Regatas, Sharja SC (UAE), Gremio Esportivo Juventus, Al Shabab Al Arabi (UAE), Al Garaga in Qatar, Al Shorta in Iraq, and Muharraq SC in Bahrain. Notably, he worked as an assistant and physical coach at Petro Atletico de Luanda in Angola in 2004 and served as an assistant head coach for Smouha SC in Egypt during the 2017/18 season. He also held the position of head coach for Thailand between 2003 and 2004.
Lopez’s most recent job before joining Vipers SC was as a Physical Coach at Taguatinga Esporte Clube in Brazil, where he worked from December 2021 to March 2022.
Before his coaching career, Lopez was a player who featured for Fluminense from 1973 to 1977, Olaria FC from 1978 to 1980, and Estrala do norte in Brazil in 1981. He also played for Oliveirense from 1981 to 1982 and Maritimo between 1983 and 1984, representing both clubs in Portugal.
