When the whistle blows and the game ends, the real drama often starts in the boardrooms. Right now, a big question mark hangs over the leadership of professional football. The Portuguese Institute of Sport and Youth, known as IPDJ, has started an investigation. They are looking into how Rui Pereira Caeiro joined the board of the Portuguese Professional Football League, or LPFP. He was brought in without being on an election list.
The IPDJ sent a written reply to the Lusa news agency about this. They said, “The process in question is currently under investigation. We cannot share more information about it right now.” This means they are gathering facts and looking closely at the situation.
The LPFP board for the 2025/26 season was officially sworn in on July 17. This happened at the organization’s main office in Porto. The board includes representatives from several top clubs. Sporting, Benfica, FC Porto, Vitória de Guimarães, and Alverca are all from the First League. Feirense, Leixões, and Marítimo represent the Second League.
Reinaldo Teixeira leads this LPFP board. He was chosen in April to finish the term that Pedro Proença started at the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). Rui Caeiro is also part of this leadership group. He was picked to be a vice president for the federation. What makes this unusual is that Caeiro was not part of any official candidate lists for the role.
Rui Caeiro has a long history in football administration. He took over the responsibility for refereeing from Pedro Proença at the FPF. He also represents the FPF on the LPFP board. Before this, he was an executive director at the LPFP. He even served as vice president for Sporting between 2013 and 2018, when Bruno de Carvalho was president of the club.
National news reports say that the LPFP itself raised questions. In a recent meeting, they asked about Rui Caeiro representing the FPF on the board that oversees professional football. It seems even those inside the organization had concerns.
This isn’t the first time Rui Caeiro’s appointments have caught the IPDJ’s eye. Back in April, the IPDJ had already asked the FPF for details. They wanted to know about Rui Caeiro’s temporary appointment as Pedro Proença’s vice president. That earlier case was closed a month later by the body led by Ricardo Gonçalves. Now, a new inquiry has begun, keeping the football world watching.