Portuguese professional footballer Joao Mario Naval da Costa Eduardo is best known as Joao Mario. The latter currently plays as a midfielder for Primeira Liga club Benfica and the Portugal national team. He can also play the role of Right Midfield and Left Midfield.
His football career began in 2002, and Mario's professional football career started with Sporting CP in 2011. And since July 2021, Mario has been playing for his current club, Benfica.
Joao Mario is living a happy life with his wife, Marta Branco Oliveira. The married couple dated each other for some years before tying the knot on June 25, 2022. Besides, Mario often posts images with his wife on his Instagram handle, where he is verified as @joaomario.
Before marrying each other, Mario and his wife had already welcomed a child. Their daughter, Olivia, was born on February 10, 2021. Mario shared the happy news of welcoming a child by posting a photo on his IG page.
Well, Mario is estimated to have a net worth of over $11 million. Mario gets paid £44,000 as his weekly wage, i.e., £2,288,000 per annum, from his current club, Benfica. Meanwhile, his current market value is €12 million, but it is not his highest value. His highest market value, €35 million, was recorded on October 14, 2016.
He also played for Inter Milan in the past, and his deal with the team was €44.78 million. Being a professional footballer, he also makes money from working with some sports brands. He is currently associated with Nike.
Having an impressive fortune, Mario lives a lavish life. He often visits the world's most expensive holiday destination and shows his life on his social media handles.
Joao Mario was born on January 19, 1993, in Porto, Portugal, to Lidia Costa and Joao Mario Eduardo. His birth sign is Capricorn. Regarding his nationality, Mario is Portuguese, and he is of African ethnicity.
He grew up alongside his brother Wilson who is also a footballer and a graduate of Sporting's youth academy. At the age of nine, Mario began his football career with his hometown's club Proto. After a brief spell, he switched to Sporting CP in 2004.
Following various youth levels at Sporting CP, Mario received his first calls for a UEFA Europa League group stage game away against S.S. Lazio on December 14, 2011. He entered the pitch in the 76th minute of the 0-2 away defeat in the match after replacing Oguchi Onyewu.
As a senior, he played 2012-13 full seasons, appearing in overall 44 games in the Segunda Liga for Sporting B.
On January 8, 2014, Joao Mario arrived in Vitoria Setubal, signing a season-long loan deal. He played 15 games overall without a goal. Moreover, he has made one Primeira Liga appearance, where he was voted the League's best young player for January and February.
On May 31, 2015, Mario returned to his parent's club. He made a total of 109 appearances and scored 13 goals for Sporting CP.
On August 27, 2016, Mario arrived at Internazionale, signing a contract for $47.56 million plus a $5.95 million bonus. On September 11, he made his team debut in a 2-1 victory at Delfino Pescara 1936. His first goal for Internazionale came on October 16 at home to Cagliari Calcio. In total, he appeared in 64 games and scored four goals.
Joao Mario has represented the national side at a very young age. He was a part of Portugal U15, U16, U17, U18, U19, U20, and U21 national team.
On October 11, 2014, Mario made his international debut in a friendly game against France, replacing Cristiano Ronaldo for the final 14 minutes, which ended in an eventual 1-2 loss. On November 10, 2017, he scored his first international goal in closing on a 3-0 friendly defeat to Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile, Mario is included in the national squad that is playing in the FIFA World Cup 2022.
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