José Fonte facts for kids
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Fonte with Portugal at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | José Miguel da Rocha Fonte | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 22 December 1983 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Penafiel, Portugal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Casa Pia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1994 | Penafiel | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994–2002 | Sporting CP | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2000 | → Sacavenense (loan) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Sporting CP B | 59 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Felgueiras | 28 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Vitória Setúbal | 15 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | Benfica | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | → Paços Ferreira (loan) | 11 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | → Estrela Amadora (loan) | 25 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | → Crystal Palace (loan) | 22 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2010 | Crystal Palace | 60 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2017 | Southampton | 260 | (15) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | West Ham United | 24 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Dalian Yifang | 7 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2023 | Lille | 166 | (8) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Braga | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Casa Pia | 25 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Portugal U21 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Portugal B | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2022 | Portugal | 50 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:31, 17 May 2025 (UTC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
José Miguel da Rocha Fonte (born on December 22, 1983) is a Portuguese professional footballer. He plays as a centre-back (a defender) and is the captain for the Primeira Liga club Casa Pia.
He began his professional journey with Sporting CP B. Later, he moved to England and played for Crystal Palace in 2007. In 2010, he joined Southampton, where he played in 288 matches. After that, he moved to West Ham United in January 2017. He also played for Dalian Yifang in China and Lille in France. With Lille, he helped them win the Ligue 1 title in the 2020–21 season.
José Fonte started playing for the Portuguese national team when he was 30 years old. He was part of the Portugal teams that played in two European Championships and the 2018 World Cup. He famously won Euro 2016 with his country.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Early Years in Portugal
José Fonte was born in Penafiel, Portugal. He learned to play football at Sporting CP, where he had also played from ages 10 to 13. As a senior player, he only played for Sporting CP B in the third division. In 2004, he joined S.C. Salgueiros, but the club faced big money problems and closed down soon after. Because of this, he moved to F.C. Felgueiras in the second division.
In 2005, Fonte played his first game in the Primeira Liga (Portugal's top league) with Vitória de Setúbal. His good performances caught the attention of Benfica, a big Portuguese club. Benfica signed him in January 2006 and immediately loaned him to F.C. Paços de Ferreira in the same league. He played 26 games that season and scored one goal. He also accidentally scored two own goals in a match against Penafiel. Both Paços and Setúbal stayed in the top league.
For the 2006–07 season, Fonte was loaned to C.F. Estrela da Amadora, another top-division team. He played in almost all their games, helping the Lisbon-based club finish ninth.
Time with Crystal Palace
In July 2007, Fonte moved to England on loan to play for Crystal Palace. He quickly became a regular player in the team, especially when other players were injured. His move became permanent at the end of the season. Crystal Palace finished fifth and got to play in the promotion play-offs.
Fonte continued to play regularly for Crystal Palace in the Championship (England's second division). Sometimes, he even played as a striker when the team needed him to.
Success at Southampton
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José Fonte joined Southampton on January 9, 2010. The transfer fee was about £1.2 million, and he signed a three-and-a-half-year contract. He played his first game a week later in a 1–1 draw against Millwall. His first goal for Southampton came on August 28 in a 4–0 win over Bristol Rovers.
Fonte scored seven goals in the league and helped Southampton get promoted to the second division. Because of his great performance, he was named in the League One Team of the Year for the 2010–11 season. He was also voted Southampton's Player of the Year, getting 64% of the votes.
On December 29, 2011, Fonte signed a new contract that kept him at the club until June 2015. At that time, Southampton was at the top of the league, and Fonte had played in every league game. He played 42 matches that season and scored one goal against Coventry City in the last game. This helped the team earn a second promotion in a row.
Fonte played his first game in the Premier League on August 19, 2012. He played the whole game in a 3–2 loss to Manchester City. He scored his first goals in the Premier League on October 7 in a 2–2 draw against Fulham. His second goal in that game came in the last minute.
On August 24, 2013, Fonte scored a header in the 89th minute against Sunderland, helping his team get a draw. On January 23, 2014, he had an incident with his teammate Dani Osvaldo during training. After this, Osvaldo was loaned to Juventus.
On August 8, 2014, Fonte signed another three-year contract until June 2017. He was also named the team captain. He played his 250th league game for Southampton on October 16, 2016, in a 3–1 win over Burnley.
Moving to West Ham United
On January 20, 2017, Fonte joined West Ham United in the English top league. The fee was reported to be around £8 million. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract. He played his first league game on February 1 in a 4–0 loss to Manchester City. In that game, he gave away a penalty by tackling Raheem Sterling.
On November 4, 2017, after a league match against his old club Crystal Palace, it was confirmed that Fonte had a foot injury. This injury kept him from playing for the rest of the year.
Time in China and France
Fonte moved to the Chinese Super League club Dalian Yifang on February 23, 2018. The reported fee was £5 million. However, he ended his contract with the club on July 15 of the same year.
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On July 20, 2018, Fonte signed a two-year contract with Lille in France. He played his first Ligue 1 game on August 18, which was a 0–0 draw against Monaco. He scored his first goal on September 22, helping Lille win 2–1 against Nantes. He also helped set up the other goal for Jonathan Ikoné. On December 16, he was sent off (given a red card) after only 16 minutes in a 3–2 win against Nîmes. This was because he used bad language towards an assistant referee. He missed only two games, and Lille finished second in the league, behind Paris Saint-Germain. He scored three goals that season, including one in a big 5–1 win over Paris Saint-Germain.
On August 9, 2019, Fonte agreed to extend his contract until 2021. As a 37-year-old captain, he led the team to win the national championship in the 2020–21 season. This was Lille's first league title since 2010–11. He played in 36 games and scored three goals that season.
After adding one more year to his contract, Fonte played in the Trophée des Champions on August 1, 2021. Lille won 1–0 against PSG in Tel Aviv. He renewed his contract again for the 2022–23 season, after which he left the club.
Later Career Moves
On July 19, 2023, Fonte signed a one-year contract with Braga in Portugal. One year later, at 40 years old, he stayed in the Portuguese top league by signing a one-year deal with Casa Pia.
International Career for Portugal
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Fonte was chosen for the Portugal B squad for a tournament in 2006. On January 24, he played against Slovenia. The game ended in a 1–1 draw and went to a penalty shoot-out, which Portugal lost.
On October 3, 2014, just two months before his 31st birthday, Fonte was called up to the senior national team for the first time. This was for a friendly match against France and a UEFA Euro 2016 qualifier against Denmark. He made his debut in another friendly game, playing the second half of a 1–0 win over Argentina at Old Trafford on November 18.
Fonte was included in Fernando Santos' squad for the Euro 2016 finals. His first game in the tournament was on June 25. He started alongside his Southampton teammate Cédric Soares in the round-of-16 match against Croatia. Portugal won that game 1–0 after extra time. He continued to play in every game until the final, helping Portugal beat the host country, France, 1–0.
Fonte was also called up for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, where he started in four matches. He also played in the winning 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals (both matches, one start). He was part of the squad for the delayed UEFA Euro 2020, but he did not play in any games. On October 9, 2021, he scored his only goal for the national team in a 3–0 friendly win against Qatar.
On March 24, 2022, at 38 years old, Fonte earned his 50th cap (international appearance) in a World Cup qualifying play-off against Turkey. In that game, he gave away a penalty in the second half. However, his Lille teammate Burak Yılmaz missed the shot, and Portugal won the game 3–1. He was named in a first list of 55 players for the World Cup finals in Qatar, but he was not chosen for the final team.
Personal Life
José Fonte's younger brother, Rui, is also a footballer. Rui plays as a forward. The two brothers were teammates at Sporting (when they were young), Crystal Palace, and Lille. Their father, Artur, played for 12 seasons in Portugal's top football division.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sporting CP B | 2002–03 | Segunda Divisão B | 22 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||||
| 2003–04 | Segunda Divisão B | 37 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 37 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 59 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 59 | 0 | ||||||
| Felgueiras | 2004–05 | Segunda Liga | 28 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 29 | 1 | |||
| Vitória Setúbal | 2005–06 | Primeira Liga | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | ||
| Benfica | 2005–06 | Primeira Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | Primeira Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2007–08 | Primeira Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Paços Ferreira (loan) | 2005–06 | Primeira Liga | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 1 | |||
| Estrela Amadora (loan) | 2006–07 | Primeira Liga | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 27 | 1 | |||
| Crystal Palace (loan) | 2007–08 | Championship | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 26 | 1 | |
| Crystal Palace | 2008–09 | Championship | 38 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 41 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | Championship | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 | ||
| Total | 82 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 92 | 6 | |||
| Southampton | 2009–10 | League One | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 24 | 0 | |
| 2010–11 | League One | 43 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 48 | 7 | ||
| 2011–12 | Championship | 42 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 44 | 1 | |||
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 2 | |||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 36 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 3 | |||
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 37 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 44 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 37 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 43 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Premier League | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 19 | 0 | ||
| Total | 260 | 15 | 9 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 288 | 15 | ||
| West Ham United | 2016–17 | Premier League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| Total | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 0 | ||||
| Dalian Yifang | 2018 | Chinese Super League | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| Lille | 2018–19 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 3 | ||
| 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 25 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 33 | 2 | ||
| 2020–21 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | — | 43 | 3 | |||
| 2021–22 | Ligue 1 | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 49 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Ligue 1 | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 33 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 166 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 196 | 9 | ||
| Braga | 2023–24 | Primeira Liga | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 33 | 0 | |
| Casa Pia | 2024–25 | Primeira Liga | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 721 | 32 | 30 | 1 | 21 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 811 | 33 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 2014 | 1 | 0 |
| 2015 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 50 | 1 | |
Scores and results list Portugal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fonte goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 October 2021 | Estádio Algarve, Faro/Loulé, Portugal |  Qatar |
2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
Honours and Awards
Southampton
- Football League Trophy: 2009–10
Lille
- Ligue 1: 2020–21
- Trophée des Champions: 2021
Braga
- Taça da Liga: 2023–24
Portugal
- UEFA European Championship: 2016
- UEFA Nations League: 2018–19
- FIFA Confederations Cup third place: 2017
Individual Awards
- PFA Team of the Year: 2010–11 League One
- Southampton Player of the Season: 2010–11, 2014–15
- Lille Player of the Season: 2020–21
Orders
Commander of the Order of Merit
See also
In Spanish: José Fonte para niños
