Benfica defender Carol Costa who has just been crowned national champion by the Eagles believes that men will follow the example of women and also win the title that all fans want. “I’m sure they will be champions too,” said the Portugal international. “We really want to celebrate with them.” The player spoke on the sidelines of an event at Benfica’s Mega Store in the Estadio da Luz. The entire team of new champions three times attended a very popular autograph session. Two hours before the session, the fans were already lining up.

register Talk to one of the first in the long line. “I arrived about two hours ago and there was no one there, but then the queue started to form. I wanted to be one of the first because those who stay until the end enter when they are already tired of signing so much,” explained Benfica fan Philippe.

The initiative took about two and a half hours, and more than a thousand fans passed through the Benfica store. No person’s signature or photo is rejected. The players also proved to be champions of friendliness and responded to almost everyone without interruption, with a few stopping by to chat with reporters.

Defender Karol Costa, 33, was the first. “I wasn’t expecting much from people, but it’s great to feel that support from our fans, we’re here because of them… It’s been an almost perfect season, unfortunately we lost the Portuguese Cup, and we’ll try to win it next year.”

One of the youngest, Beatriz Nogueira, was radiant. “I’m proud to learn from them, from all of them, I can’t single out one of them, they’re all important. Our season makes us hungry to keep winning next season, and would prefer to go further in the Champions League,” said the 19-year-old forward, one of the faces of the next batch of superstars. “This generation is very strong, they learn very quickly and it’s good to see that Benfica is betting on us,” he explained.

Finally, Ana Vitória, a 23-year-old midfielder, has been in the project since the start and already has 11 trophies with Benfica. “It feels very good, it’s the fulfillment of dreams. I’ve been here since the beginning and immediately we knew what we wanted. I feel very proud to have been here since then and next year we want what was missing this season, Portugal.”