Luisão facts for kids
Luisão before a match with Brazil in 2006
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Ânderson Luís da Silva | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 13 February 1981 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Amparo, São Paulo, Brazil | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Centre back | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1999 | Juventus-SP | 18 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2003 | Cruzeiro | 62 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2018 | Benfica | 337 | (26) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 417 | (34) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | Brazil U20 | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2011 | Brazil | 44 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Ânderson Luís da Silva (born February 13, 1981), known as Luisão, is a Brazilian former professional footballer. He played as a centre back, which is a defender who plays in the middle of the field.
Luisão started his career in Brazil with Juventus-SP in 1999. He then moved to Cruzeiro in 2000, where he played for three seasons. From 2003 to 2018, he spent his entire professional career with the Portuguese club Benfica. He played in 538 official matches for Benfica. He holds club records for most international matches (127), most major titles won (20), and longest-serving captain (414 matches).
Luisão also played for the Brazilian national team 44 times. He played in two World Cups and three Copa América tournaments, scoring three goals for his country.
Contents
Luisão's Football Journey
Starting in Brazil
Luisão was born in Amparo, São Paulo, Brazil. He played for Clube Atlético Juventus and Cruzeiro Esporte Clube in his home country. In his third season with Cruzeiro, in 2001, he scored a career-best 6 goals in 24 matches.
Moving to Benfica in Portugal
In the summer of 2003, Luisão moved to Europe. He signed with the Portuguese club Benfica for about £890,000. It was hard for him to get used to his new team at first. He even thought about going back to Brazil.
However, he scored in his very first league game on September 14, which was a 3–3 draw. In his first season (2003–04), he helped Benfica win the Taça de Portugal cup. They beat their rivals FC Porto 2–1 in the final.
Winning the League Title
During the 2004–05 season, Luisão was a regular player in Benfica's defense. He played in 29 matches and helped Benfica win their first league title in 11 years. On April 24, 2005, he scored his first goal of the season. On May 14, he scored the only goal in a game against Sporting CP, which helped Benfica win the league.
In the 2005–06 season, Benfica did not win any trophies. However, the team reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Luisão played in all the matches. On February 21, 2006, he scored in Benfica's 1–0 home win against Liverpool, who were the champions at the time.
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Becoming Captain and Challenges
During the 2006–07 season, Luisão was sometimes named club captain. This happened when other captains like Nuno Gomes and Petit were injured. The club did not win any major trophies that season.
In January 2008, Luisão had an argument with a teammate during a game. Both players were taken out of the game and suspended by the club. They later apologized to each other. Luisão also had some injuries during this time.
More Trophies and Records
Luisão started the 2008–09 season by scoring a goal in a UEFA Cup match. In the next season, he had his best year. He played in 45 matches and scored six goals. Benfica won the league title and the Taça da Liga cup. They also reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa League.
On August 28, 2010, Luisão scored a goal with his head in a 3–0 win. On September 14, he scored in the Champions League group stage.
In August 2012, Luisão was involved in an incident with a referee during a friendly match. This led to him being suspended for two months and fined. He missed 11 matches, including some important Champions League games.
On March 13, 2014, Luisão scored two goals in a Europa League match against Tottenham Hotspur. In the next season, on January 18, 2015, he played his 440th official game for Benfica. This meant he had played as many games as the legendary player Eusébio.
On April 26, 2015, Luisão became Benfica's longest-serving captain. He had been captain for 229 matches, passing Mário Coluna. A day after his 36th birthday, on February 14, 2017, he played his 500th game for Benfica. Only three other players had reached this milestone for the club before him. By winning the 2017 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira cup, he became the Benfica player with the most titles won for the club, with 20 trophies.
On September 25, 2018, Luisão announced that he was retiring from professional football.
Luisão's International Career
Luisão played for the Brazil Under-20 team in 2001. He made his debut for the senior Brazil national team on July 23, 2001.
In 2003, Luisão was part of the Brazil squad that finished second in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He also played in the 2004 Copa América tournament, where Brazil won. He played in all six matches and scored his first international goal in the final against Argentina.
Luisão was also part of the Brazilian squads that won the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. He played in four of Brazil's five matches in the 2009 tournament, including the final win against the United States.
He was selected for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Brazil reached the quarter-finals, but Luisão did not play in any matches.
Luisão's Personal Life
Luisão has two younger brothers, Alex Silva and Andrei Silva, who are also football defenders. Luisão is a member of Atletas de Cristo (Athletes of Christ). This is a group of Brazilian Evangelical footballers.
Luisão married Brenda Mattar in 2016. They have two daughters named Sophia and Valentina. They announced their divorce in 2022.
Career Statistics
Club
- Sources:
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other1 | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Juventus-SP | 1999 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 1 | 18 | 1 | ||||||
| Cruzeiro | 2000 | Série A | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2001 | 20 | 1 | — | — | 14 | 2 | 22 | 0 | 56 | 3 | |||||
| 2002 | 24 | 6 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 3 | 57 | 9 | |||||
| 2003 | 15 | 0 | 5 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 31 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 62 | 7 | 10 | 1 | — | 16 | 2 | 62 | 4 | 150 | 14 | ||||
| Benfica | 2003–04 | Primeira Liga | 15 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 4 | 0 | — | 22 | 4 | |||
| 2004–05 | 29 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 2 | ||||
| 2005–06 | 31 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 2 | ||||
| 2006–07 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | — | 29 | 2 | |||||
| 2007–08 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 35 | 4 | ||||
| 2008–09 | 21 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | 33 | 4 | ||||
| 2009–10 | 28 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 12 | 1 | — | 45 | 6 | ||||
| 2010–11 | 23 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 6 | |||
| 2011–12 | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 1 | — | 41 | 2 | ||||
| 2012–13 | 18 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 33 | 1 | ||||
| 2013–14 | 28 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 3 | — | 49 | 6 | ||||
| 2014–15 | 30 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 4 | |||
| 2015–16 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |||
| 2016–17 | 28 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 1 | |||
| 2017–18 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 2 | |||
| 2018–19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 337 | 26 | 44 | 8 | 24 | 2 | 127 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 538 | 47 | |||
| Career total | 399 | 33 | 54 | 9 | 24 | 2 | 143 | 13 | 86 | 5 | 706 | 62 | |||
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1"Other" includes Campeonato Paulista Série A2, Campeonato Mineiro, |
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International Appearances
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 2001 | 1 | 0 |
| 2003 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2010 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 44 | 3 | |
International Goals
- Source:
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 July 2004 | Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru |  Argentina |
2–2 | Draw | 2004 Copa América |
| 2 | 15 November 2006 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland |  Switzerland |
2–1 | Win | Friendly |
| 3 | 5 September 2009 | Gigante de Arroyito, Rosario, Argentina | Argentina |
3–1 | Win | 2010 World Cup Qualification |
Honours and Awards
Club Trophies
Cruzeiro
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2003
- Copa do Brasil: 2000, 2003
- Campeonato Mineiro: 2003
Benfica
- Primeira Liga: 2004–05, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
- Taça de Portugal: 2003–04, 2013–14, 2016–17
- Taça da Liga: 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2005, 2014, 2016, 2017
- UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2012–13, 2013–14
International Trophies
Brazil
- Copa América: 2004
- FIFA Confederations Cup: 2005, 2009
- CONCACAF Gold Cup: Silver medal 2003
Individual Awards
- Cosme Damião Awards – Footballer of the Year: 2009
See also
In Spanish: Luisão para niños
