The former club player obtained an expressive result in the electoral law in which 40,115 members took part in the Luz ballot, surpassing the record set last year.

Rui Costa is the new supreme leader in the world of Benfica, having achieved an expressive victory over Francisco Benitez, in the most disputed election in the club’s history. The former Luz captain was approved by a large majority of partners, succeeding Luis Felipe Vieira in directing and, by nature, in command of the SAD.

In the 117 years of history, Benfica has never lived a day like this. The race between Rui Costa and Francisco Benítez for the presidency resulted in the largest electoral event ever, with 40,115 members participating., out of a total of 115,681 eligible, they exercise their right to vote and surpass the record set in October last year (38102), when Luis Felipe Vieira defeated Joao Noronha Lopez and Rui Gomez da Silva. The fact that the electoral law was implemented only in paper form – not in the electronic version – along with the high turnout, delayed the count and meant that the results were not known until the early hours of Sunday.

With 25 polling stations spread across the country, attention naturally focused on Suite 2 of Estádio da Luz, and before the polls opened, it was already possible to see that the day was going to be historic. It was not yet eight in the morning and hundreds of people were already lining up, in a scenario that lingered all day.

List B disclaims Vieira

The day passed almost without incident, except for a time when tension escalated when the former president voted (see next page). The fact that Luis Felipe Vieira referred to his vote (Rui Costa) while in the building led to List B issuing a statement. “To disavow the statements of the former chairman who is still a partner, and assert that he has just seriously violated Section 30, Number 2, of the Electoral Regulations,” it read. The article in question states that the partners cannot determine the direction of voting within a radius of 200 metres. Comedian Ricardo Araujo Pereira assumed he voted for Benitez near the stand and was widely criticized.

Resignation and succession

After Luis Felipe Vieira resigned from the position he had held for 18 years, following his arrest in Operation “Red Card”, “Deputy” Rui Costa took over the interim presidency and asked for an election date, finding the presidency of the movement. Competition “Benfica Service”. The group of members, led by Francisco Benitez, accused the club’s former No. 10 player of turning a blind eye to Vieira’s management and presenting himself as a substitute, preventing a single-list election.