João Mário Naval da Costa Eduardo (born 19 January 1993), known as João Mário (), is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Super League Greece club AEK Athens.
He started out at Sporting CP in whose youth system he developed, being loaned to Vitória de Setúbal in 2014 and subsequently returning to be an important part of the squads that won major trophies, including the 2015 Taça de Portugal. In 2016 he joined Inter Milan, having loan spells at West Ham United and Lokomotiv Moscow prior to rejoining Sporting, also on loan, in 2020, where he won the Primeira Liga title. He then spent three full seasons with Benfica, winning another league in 2022–23 while scoring 17 goals.
João Mário made his senior debut for Portugal in 2014. He was named in the squads for Euro 2016 and the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, winning the 2016 tournament.
Club career Sporting CP Following a brief youth spell with local Porto in his hometown, where he was deployed as a central defender, João Mário moved to Sporting CP in 2004 at the age of 11, going on to complete his development with the Lisbon club. On 14 December 2011 he was called for a UEFA Europa League group stage game away against Lazio, alongside youth graduates Betinho, Ricardo Esgaio, Tiago Ilori and João Carlos, as the Lions had already secured the first place in its group: he entered the pitch in the 76th minute of the 2–0 away loss, after replacing Oguchi Onyewu.
João Mário's first full season as a senior was 2012–13, as he appeared in 31 games (30 as a starter) for Sporting CP B in the Segunda Liga, with the team finishing in fourth position. On 8 January 2014 he was loaned to Vitória de Setúbal for the remainder of the campaign, starting in all but one Primeira Liga matches he appeared in and being voted the league's best young player for January and February.
On 31 May 2015, again with Sporting' main squad, João Mário started in the final of the Taça de Portugal against Braga, but was substituted in the first half due to the dismissal of defender Cédric Soares, in order to bring on Miguel Lopes; Sporting eventually won in a penalty shootout.
Inter Milan On 27 August 2016, João Mário signed with Inter Milan for €40 million plus €5 million in bonuses. His maiden appearance in Serie A occurred on 11 September when he played the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 victory at Pescara, and his first goal for the team opened a loss by the same score at home to Cagliari on 16 October.
Under new manager Luciano Spalletti, João Mário grew increasingly frustrated about the lack of playing time. On 25 January 2018, he signed on loan for Premier League team West Ham United– the contract included a €1.5 million loan fee, and an option for the club to buy the player for a sum in the region of €40 million. He made his debut two days later, replacing Pablo Zabaleta at half-time in a 2–0 away loss to Wigan Athletic in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
João Mário scored his first goal for West Ham on 31 March 2018, helping the hosts to defeat Southampton 3–0. He made 14 competitive appearances during his half-season spell, scoring twice, and was praised for his work rate.
On 27 August 2019, João Mário joined Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow on a season-long loan. On 6 October 2020, also on loan, he returned to Sporting. He scored his first goal in his second spell on 27 December, from a penalty to close a 2–1 away win against B-SAD. He contributed another until the end of the campaign (from 28 appearances), helping his team to win the league for the first time in 19 years.
On 12 July 2021, Inter announced they had reached an agreement to early terminate João Mário's contract by mutual consent.
Benfica João Mário joined Benfica on 13 July 2021, on a five-year deal. He scored his first competitive goal on 10 August, opening the 2–0 home victory over Spartak Moscow in the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League.
In the following edition of that tournament, João Mário scored four times in the group stage; this included a first-half penalty in a 2–1 away defeat of Juventus on 14 September 2022, and the sixth goal in the 92nd minute of the 6–1 win at Maccabi Haifa on 2 November that qualified his team as group winners on away goal difference. He added a career-best 17 in the league for the champions.
João Mário scored his first career hat-trick on 29 November 2023, with all goals coming in the first half of an eventual 3–3 home draw against his former club Inter Milan in the Champions League group phase; he also became the first player to achieve the feat for Benfica in the competition's format.
Beşiktaş On 4 September 2024, João Mário was loaned to Beşiktaş until the end of the season. He scored seven goals in all competitions, adding four assists.
In June 2025, the mandatory €2 million purchase clause was activated and João Mário signed a permanent contract.
AEK Athens On 12 September 2025, João Mário was loaned to Super League Greece club AEK Athens. On 10 May 2026, he scored a stoppage-time goal in a 2–1 victory over Panathinaikos to secure a 14th league title.
In September 2026, having mutually terminated his contract with Beşiktaş, João Mário agreed to a permanent deal.
International career
Of Angolan descent, João Mário earned 82 caps for Portugal at youth level, including 13 for the under-21 team. He made his senior debut on 11 October 2014, replacing Cristiano Ronaldo for the final 14 minutes of the friendly against France in Paris: soon after coming on, he was fouled by Paul Pogba for a penalty converted by Ricardo Quaresma, in an eventual 2–1 loss.
João Mário represented Portugal at the UEFA European Under-21 Championship in 2015, netting the only goal of their opening group win over England as the tournament ended with a runner-up finish. He was selected by the full side for their UEFA Euro 2016 campaign, starting in the first match, a 1–1 draw with Iceland in Saint-Étienne; he played in all of his team's seven games during Euro 2016, including the final against France which they won.
João Mário scored his first goal for the nation on 10 November 2017, closing the 3–0 friendly defeat of Saudi Arabia. Subsequently, he was included in the final squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
In November 2022, João Mário was named in the squad for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. On 28 May 2023, he announced his retirement from international play.
Personal life João Mário's older brother, Wilson, is also a footballer. He too graduated from Sporting's youth academy.
In June 2022, João Mário married Marta Branco Oliveira with whom he already had a 1-year-old daughter.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsSporting CP2011–12Primeira Liga00000010—102012–1310000000—102014–15305620080—4472015–1633620207110457Total64118220161109114Vitória Setúbal (loan)2013–14Primeira Liga1500010——160Inter Milan2016–17Serie A30320—00—3232017–1814010———1502018–1920120—00—221Total64450—00—694West Ham United (loan)2017–18Premier League13210———142Lokomotiv Moscow (loan)2019–20Russian Premier League18100—40—221Sporting CP (loan)2020–21Primeira Liga282303000—342Benfica2021–22Primeira Liga2832030121—4542022–2333174000146—51232023–243136231103105192024–2520————20Total94231226136101014936Beşiktaş (loan)2024–25Süper Lig27541—61—377Beşiktaş2025–26Süper Lig20——63—83Beşiktaş total29541—124—4510AEK Athens (loan)2025–26Super League Greece26251———313AEK Athens2026–270000—00—00AEK Athens total26251—00—313Career total3515038612168152047172
International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsPortugal20142020154020161702017812018111201930202000202150202251202310Total563
Scores and results list Portugal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each João Mário goal. + List of international goals scored by João MárioNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 10 November 2017 Fontelo, Viseu, Portugal 3–0 3–0 Friendly2 28 May 2018 Estádio Municipal, Braga, Portugal 2–0 Friendly3 17 November 2022 Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal 4–0 Friendly
Honours Sporting CP Primeira Liga: 2020–21 Taça de Portugal: 2014–15 Taça da Liga: 2020–21 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2015
Benfica Primeira Liga: 2022–23 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2023
AEK Athens Super League Greece: 2025–26
Portugal UEFA European Championship: 2016 UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 2015
Individual Primeira Liga Team of the Year: 2022–23 UEFA European Under-17 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2010
Orders Commander of the Order of Merit
References
External links
National team data