A big scenario is brewing in Portuguese football: the name of Jose Mourinho has started to be mentioned more and more in the future plans for the management of the national team. According to British and international sports media, the Portuguese Football Federation may consider the option of handing over the national team to Jose Mourinho after the contract with the current coach expires.
It is noted that the agreement with the current head coach Roberto Martinez is valid until July 31, 2026. This means that the Portuguese national team will enter the 2026 major tournament under the leadership of Martinez. This is not just “another piece of news”: if such a deadline is clear, the federation will also think ahead and be ready for the question “who next?”
The most interesting point: in the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the national team of Portugal and the national team of Uzbekistan are in the same group. In this sense, for us, every detail on this topic is not just a simple “European talk”, but a directly interesting and topical story.
Currently, Mourinho is working at the club level: he is managing Benfica in Lisbon, and his contract with the club is said to be until the end of the 2026–27 season (in practice, until the summer of 2027). That is, if the national team option becomes a reality, it will not end with just “we made a phone call” - there will also be separate negotiations, agreements, and possibly compensation issues with the club. In football, the saying “everything is easy” usually only exists in rumors.
For fans, however, the taste of this news is different: Mourinho is a specialist who lives under the pressure of results and strictly adheres to the “plan” in big games. The national team has little time, short training sessions, but high demands. Therefore, this appointment (if it happens) could be a change of style for Portugal: a more pragmatic approach, more discipline, a spirit of "1:0 is a win."
Of course, this is not an official statement yet, but more of a possibility and a scenario. But one thing is certain: with Martinez's contract set to expire, big decisions about the next period will become even more heated as the summer of 2026 approaches. At that time, it will be clear who is right and who is just "hyping".
And for us, the most interesting part is ahead: if the Portuguese national team really embarks on a new path with a new head coach, it could affect not only their internal football policy, but also the dynamics of our group at the World Cup. Football is not chess, but sometimes a change of coach can change the whole scenario.
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