AFC Bournemouth now have a vacancy to think about after Andoni Iraola confirmed he will leave at the end of the 2025/26 season. This will end a successful spell on the south coast.
While there are high profile names and Premier League proven managers being mentioned, few of them may have Bournemouth’s admiration like Vasco Botelho.
In February, we covered the claim from ESPN Brazil journalist Bruno Andrade. He reported that Bournemouth see the Moreirense coach as part of a succession plan inside the same wider group.
At the time, that sounded like an interesting detail. Now with Iraola on the way out, it starts to sound a lot more relevant.
There is still no sign that Bournemouth have made a final decision. Even so, Botelho is not just another name thrown into the mix. He is a coach the club are said to know well. Also, he is a coach already working within the club’s ecosystem, and a coach whose profile looks like it would make sense at the Vitality Stadium.
Why Vasco Botelho stands out
At 37 years old, Vasco Botelho is still young for a senior coach. However, the rise has been fast and earned.
He started in youth football at GDS Cascais when he was only 17, as told by ZeroZero. He then moved through Estoril’s academy structure and made a serious name for himself with the club’s Under-23s. During this time, he won the Liga Revelação twice and the Taça Revelação twice.
After that came União de Leiria, where he won promotion from Liga 3, and then Alverca. At Alverca, he took over a struggling side and ended up leading them into the Primeira Liga. He arrived with the club in 14th place. Next, he drove a remarkable second half of the season.
That alone would make him an interesting candidate. The more revealing part is how people describe him.
As revealed by an extensive piece on Portuguese outlet Sábado, one former player said he is seen as a demanding, methodical coach with an attacking mentality, someone who wants brave teams, defensive organisation and strong possession football.
The player added that he values quality under pressure and does not want teams simply clearing the ball when squeezed.
That sounds like the kind of identity Bournemouth have tried to build.
The personality behind the coach
Vasco Botelho also comes across as someone who lives the job completely.
In a more personal interview, he explained: “I set my alarm for 6:15, but I usually wake up a bit earlier. Normally, I am the first to arrive at the club, before 7:00. In those first hours, that is when I feel truly productive.”
That is not the language of someone casually passing through a role. Instead, it paints a coach who is deeply invested in detail, planning and structure.
At the same time, he does not speak like a pure obsessive who wants players permanently locked inside football. He also said: “On the day before the game, everyone has to have the afternoon off, to rest and do other things, so they can clear their head.”
That balance is one of the more interesting parts of his profile. He pushes hard, but he does not seem blind to mental freshness.
He framed that broader thinking clearly when discussing the profession: “We have to be able to adapt to the context, and also to have balance, which is one of the most important things.
“We have to keep that balance and accept that we will not always have everything the way we want. There are many wars we will have, and we have to accept losing some battles to win others. But there is no room to relax. We have to be eternally dissatisfied”, he said.
There is flexibility in it, but also edge. Bournemouth may well like both parts.
A coach who seems to connect with players
The external descriptions add even more colour for Bournemouth fans.
A former colleague said Botelho “already stood out because of the quality of his training” and that he would watch opponents, film matches, edit the footage and then show it to players.
Another recalled that his sessions and video analysis were “very complete”, adding that he was the first coach they had seen hold individual meetings with every player before the season started.
Former player Hugo Leal described him as “a ‘scowling’ coach, in the good sense”, someone who did not rest until everything was in place.
Fernando Varela, who captained Alverca under him, said Botelho imposed rules immediately “without the players becoming upset” and also stressed the human side of his management.
Bournemouth are not just replacing tactics when Iraola leaves. They will also be replacing a voice, a presence and a daily standard-setter. Botelho’s profile suggests someone who can be demanding without becoming disconnected from the group.
He also seems comfortable thinking about success in a wider way. In an interview with A Bola, he said: “In football, we cannot say there is only one way to guarantee success.”
He then used Djokovic, Federer and Nadal as examples of champions with different paths. He also added: “Michael Jordan played 12 seasons and won six rings… In the other seasons, was that failure?”
It suggests a coach who can deal with pressure without becoming prisoner to every short-term swing.
English would not be a problem
One detail that stands out strongly in a Bournemouth context is language.
Vasco Botelho worked at St. James’ School in Cascais, an experience that helped him refine his English. Portuguese reporting also notes that he has a command of the language. Therefore, that should remove one obvious concern if he were ever considered for a move to England.
So if Bournemouth were to accelerate their thinking, communication would not look like a barrier at all.
He is already operating in an environment tied to Bournemouth, and the practical side of a switch appears far less complicated than it might for other emerging candidates.
Why the fit makes sense for Bournemouth
None of this guarantees an appointment. Bournemouth may decide they want a more experienced name. They may prefer someone already tested in a top-five league. They may also stick to a broader search.
Still, if the club really do view Vasco Botelho as part of their succession planning, Iraola’s exit changes the timing of the conversation.
He has the upward curve and the coaching identity. He has the detail, the intensity and, by all accounts, the personality to lead. Also, he has the English to step into that world without it feeling forced and has won his fair share of minor trophies.
So while Bournemouth supporters may not know his name as well as some of the more obvious candidates, Botelho does not look like a speculative outsider. He looks much more like a coach the club may already have been preparing themselves to trust.