A player who needs no introduction is Portugal’s legendary captain, but how much do you know about Madjer?
Widely considered as one of the greatest of all time, Madjer has a fascinating past that not many people know about.
João Victor Saraiva, more commonly known as Madjer after the former Algerian player Rabah Madjer, was born 22 January 1977 in Luanda, Angola.
He is the only brother to four sisters and moved to Portugal as a child where he dreamed of being a footballer.
Since then he’s won it all and has achieved countless individual honours, including becoming the first player to score 1000 international beach soccer career goals during an 8–1 win over England in September 2016.
He also represents his beloved Sporting Club de Portugal at club level to this day, as well as having played for numerous others in the past, including Lokomotiv Moscow (Russia), AS Roma (Italy) and Botafago (Brazil).
But where did it all begin…?
“I started beach soccer in 1997 in an amateur tournament near my home in Carcavelos, Portugal.” Madjer recalls.
“At first it was strange, but after the tournament I knew that this was my sport and the national coach at that time seemed to think the same!”
Since being scouted for the national team, Madjer has done great things with Portugal. “Winning the World Cup (2015) and an Olympic gold medal (2019) are my greatest achievements. When I started I never dreamed that I could possibly win such important titles in my career.”
The big number seven may have reached the top of beach soccer and made a fabled career out of being one of the sport’s best ever, but it wasn’t always like that…
“I worked in nightclubs and bars as a barman for nine years to earn a living before I discovered beach soccer. Since then I have been on an incredible journey and met some amazing people.”
“There have been many inspirational figures that made me dream in this sport: Carlos Xavier and Sotil who brought me into beach soccer, players like Hernani, Nunes, José Miguel as teammates at the beginning. Amarelle, Jorginho, Junior, J.Negao, Benjamin… They all made me grow in healthy competition and there are many more beside them!”
And how does Madjer see his own future in beach soccer?
“My role in the future of the game remains to be seen but I can see that beach soccer will keep growing, not only the men’s game but women’s as well. On top of that there are more and more kids loving it so the future is bright!”
FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup winner, Olympic gold medal holder, what else can this true beach soccer legend contribute to our wonderful sport?
