Ricardo Velho

Ricardo Velho
Velho with Portugal in 2026
Personal information
Full name Mário Ricardo da Silva Velho[1]
Date of birth (1998-08-20) 20 August 1998[1]
Place of birth Famalicão, Portugal[1]
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
 Aris
Number 33
Youth career
2006–2007 Vitória Guimarães
2007–2009 Porto
2009–2010 Salgueiros
2010–2012 Trofense
2012–2013 Braga
2013–2014 Palmeiras Braga
2014–2017 Braga
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2020 Braga B 11 (0)
2020–2026 Farense 97 (0)
2025–2026 → Gençlerbirliği (loan) 23 (0)
2026– Aris 0 (0)
International career‡
2026– Portugal 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 14:04, 19 May 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 01:05, 1 April 2026 (UTC)

Mário Ricardo da Silva Velho (born 20 August 1998) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Super League Greece club Aris and the Portugal national team.

Club career

Braga

Born in Vila Nova de Famalicão, Braga District, Velho joined Braga's academy when he was 14.[2] On 23 August 2017, he made his professional debut with the reserve team in a 2–1 away loss against Penafiel in the LigaPro.[3]

During his spell, Velho played second-fiddle to Tiago Sá (who later appeared in several matches for the main squad) and Rogério Santos.[4][5]

Farense

On 31 July 2020, Velho signed a two-year contract with Primeira Liga club Farense.[6] In the 2022–23 season, he contributed 22 games as his side finished runners-up and returned to the main division after a two-year absence, while they conceded a league-best 34 goals; subsequently, he agreed to an extension until June 2026.[7][8]

Velho's maiden appearance in the top flight took place on 12 August 2023, in a 0–3 home defeat to Casa Pia.[9] Due to his performances, which included a league-best 143 saves and seven clean sheets with Farense finishing tenth, he was voted the campaign's Goalkeeper of the Year.[10][11][12]

In summer 2024, Velho was linked with a move to Benfica, but the deal fell through when Farense demanded that his €10 million buyout clause be paid. This led to him agreeing to extend his contract until 2028.[13]

Velho missed the final month of 2024–25, due to a knee ligament injury that required surgery.[14] His team would be ultimately relegated as second-bottom.[15]

Shortly after the start of the following season, Velho was loaned to Gençlerbirliği with an option to buy.[16] He only made his Süper Lig debut on 7 November, in a 2–1 home win over İstanbul Başakşehir; manager Volkan Demirel later disclosed that he was fielded because the Turkish club would have to pay €200.000 in compensation if he did not take part in the required number of matches in the first half of the campaign.[17][18]

Aris

On 18 August 2026, Velho joined Super League Greece side Aris Thessaloniki on a four-year deal.[19]

International career

Velho was not capped by Portugal at any youth level. On 4 October 2024, he was called by the senior team for matches against Poland and Scotland in the UEFA Nations League.[20]

On 31 March 2026, Velho made his full debut, coming on as an 85th-minute substitute for José Sá in a 2–0 friendly victory over the United States in Atlanta.[21][22] He was selected for the year's FIFA World Cup as an emergency-only fourth goalkeeper.[23]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 17 May 2026[24]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Braga B 2017–18 LigaPro 20——20
2018–19 LigaPro 00——00
2019–20 Campeonato de Portugal 90——90
Total 110——110
Farense 2020–21 Primeira Liga 0000—00
2021–22 Liga Portugal 2 1203000150
2022–23 Liga Portugal 2 2200010230
2023–24 Primeira Liga 3200030350
2024–25 Primeira Liga 28020—300
2025–26 Liga Portugal 2 30——30
Total 97050401060
Gençlerbirliği (loan) 2025–26 Süper Lig 23010—240
Career total 131060401410

Honours

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Ricardo Velho" (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  2. ↑ Rivelino, Roberto (3 July 2015). "Ricardo Velho (16 anos) promovido ao SC Braga B" [Ricardo Velho (aged 16) promoted to SC Braga B] (in Portuguese). Mundo dos Guarda-Redes. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  3. ↑ "Penafiel-Sp. Braga B, 2–1: Durienses ficam com os três pontos" [Penafiel-Sp. Braga B, 2–1: Durienses take the three points]. Record (in Portuguese). 23 August 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  4. ↑ Rocha, Pedro (23 March 2019). "Há um outro Tiago a nascer na baliza do Braga e pode ocupar a vaga de Marafona" [Another Tiago is being born in Braga's goal and he may take Marafona's place]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  5. ↑ "Braga renova com jovem guarda-redes da equipa B" [Braga renew with young B-team goalkeeper] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  6. ↑ Alves, Armando (31 July 2020). "Ricardo Velho é reforço para a baliza do Farense" [Ricardo Velho is addition for Farense goal]. Record (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  7. ↑ "Ricardo Velho renova com o Farense até 2026" [Ricardo Velho renews with Farense until 2026]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 22 July 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  8. ↑ "Farense Velho até 2025 [sic]" [Farense Velho until 2026]. A Bola (in Portuguese). 22 July 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  9. ↑ "Casa Pia vence Farense na estreia na I Liga 2023/24" [Casa Pia beat Farense in 2023/24 I League opener]. A Voz do Algarve (in Portuguese). 12 August 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  10. ↑ "Ricardo Velho eleito o guarda-redes da época 2023/24 na Liga" [Ricardo Velho voted goalkeeper of the 2023/24 season in League] (in Portuguese). CNN Portugal. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  11. 1 2 Anjinho, Jorge (3 June 2024). "Farense: Ricardo Velho eleito guarda-redes do ano" [Farense: Ricardo Velho voted goalkeeper of the year]. A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 14 June 2024.
  12. ↑ Braga Sampaio, Inês (3 October 2024). ""De que é que estamos à espera?" A candidatura de Ricardo Velho à seleção, por três pessoas que o conhecem bem" ["What are we waiting for?" Ricardo Velho's candidacy to the national team, by three people who know him well] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  13. ↑ "Ricardo Velho renova com Farense até 2028" [Ricardo Velho renews with Farense until 2028]. Jornal de Notícias (in Portuguese). 20 September 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  14. ↑ Anjinho, Jorge (29 April 2025). "Farense: terminou a época para Ricardo Velho" [Farense: season over for Ricardo Velho]. A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 16 July 2025.
  15. ↑ "Tozé Marreco deixa o Farense" [Tozé Marreco leaves Farense] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. 29 May 2025. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
  16. ↑ Nunes, David (12 September 2025). "Oficial: Ricardo Velho troca o Farense pela Turquia" [Official: Ricardo Velho swaps Farense for Turkey]. A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  17. ↑ "Turquia: Velho estreia-se pelo Gençlerbirligi por motivos contratuais" [Turkey: Velho makes Gençlerbirligi debut for contractual reasons] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 8 November 2025. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  18. ↑ "Quase três meses sem jogar e uma cláusula levou-o à estreia: Ricardo Velho é tema na Turquia" [Almost three months without playing and a clause led to his debut: Ricardo Velho the talk of the town in Turkey] (in Portuguese). SAPO. 10 November 2025. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  19. ↑ "Άρης, μεταγραφές: Ανακοίνωσε τον διεθνή Πορτογάλο τερματοφύλακα Ρικάρντο Βέλιο για τέσσερα χρόνια" [Aris, transfers: Signing of Portuguese international goalkeeper Ricardo Velho for four years announced]. Parapolitika (in Greek). 18 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  20. ↑ Aleixo, Mário (4 October 2024). "Ricardo Velho e Samú Costa chamados por Martínez" [Ricardo Velho and Samú Costa called by Martínez] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  21. ↑ "Portugal outclasses U.S. amid Christian Pulisic goal drought". ESPN. 1 April 2026. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  22. ↑ "Ricardo Velho e Mateus Fernandes elevam para 16 os estreantes na 'era' Roberto Martínez" [Ricardo Velho and Mateus Fernandes make it 16 debutants in the Roberto Martínez 'era']. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 1 April 2026. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  23. ↑ Wodner, Matias (19 May 2026). "The reason Portugal called up 4 goalkeepers for World Cup: No reason to fret for Cristiano Ronaldo fans". Marca. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
  24. ↑ Ricardo Velho at Soccerway
  25. ↑ "Jota Silva fecha o 'Onze do Ano' da Primeira Liga" [Jota Silva completes the First League's 'All-Star Team'] (in Portuguese). SAPO. 13 June 2024. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
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