Porto announced on its official website on Tuesday that the club's director of football and former legendary captain Jorge Costa, had passed away suddenly from a cardiac arrest at the age of 53.

According to Porto's official obituary, Costa collapsed while observing a pre-season training session at the club's training ground. Staff immediately called an ambulance and rushed him to the hospital, but unfortunately, Costa died.

Porto stated that the entire club is deeply saddened by Costa's sudden passing. His leadership, professionalism, and passion for everything will be forever remembered.

Costa will always be a symbol of the club and the younger generation. His influence, both as captain and off the pitch, will be remembered forever.

Memorials for Costa will be announced to fans and the public in due course.

Costa becomes the third Porto legend that the club had lost in two months, following legendary Portugal international striker Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva. The three had previously worked together at Paços de Ferreira, and Costa was among those who attended the brothers' funerals last month.

About Jorge Costa

Costa was born on October 14, 1971, in Porto, Portugal. Standing 1.88 meters tall, he played as a center-back and earned the nicknames "The Beast" and "The Tank" from fans for his aggressive style of play.

Costa joined the youth academy of his hometown club, Porto, at the age of 16. After being promoted to the-first team in the summer of 1990, he was successively loaned-out to Peñafiel and then Maritimo. During his time there, he attracted controversy for several intentional own goals that helped his parent club win.

After returning from his loan spell in the summer of 1992, Costa officially became a regular in Porto's first-team and was officially appointed captain five years later.

In the summer of 2001, Costa was loaned-out to Charlton Athletic following a falling out with then-manager Octavio Machado, where he helped the club avoid relegation.

Upon his return from loan the following summer, Costa once again became a key player and captain for Porto under renowned manager José Mourinho.

In January 2006, Costa joined Standard Liège on a free transfer, reuniting with his former teammate and future Porto manager Sergio Conceição. He retired that same summer.

Since retirement, Costa has remained passionate about coaching, managing clubs such as Braga, Olhanense, Cluj, Paços de Ferreira, the Gabonese national team, Mumbai City, and AVS. During this time, he won the Portuguese Second Division once and the Romanian First Division once.

In the summer of 2024, Costa returned to Porto as Director of Football.

During his playing spell, in a 13-year spell, Costa played 320 times for Porto in all competitions, scoring 20 goals and providing 5 assists. During which he won 8 Portuguese Primeira Liga titles, 5 Taça de Portugal, 5 Portuguese Super Cups, 1 Champions League, 1 UEFA Cup and 1 Club World Cup with the club.