Prof. Israel Teoldo da Costa

Professor Israel Teoldo da Costa is an internationally recognised football coach educator and academic whose work centres on training methodology, evaluation, and decision-making in soccer, with a particular emphasis on modern tactical analysis and applied coach development. He holds a long-standing appointment at the Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Brazil, where he has been a Professor Associado since June 2010 and, since January 2011, has served as Coordinator of UFV’s Post-Graduation in Soccer, leading one of Brazil’s established university-based pathways for football specialisation.

Alongside his university leadership, Teoldo da Costa has built an extensive applied profile across global football governance. Since March 2018, he has worked as a Consultant for CONMEBOL (South American Football Confederation), supporting performance and development initiatives across the region. He has also been a Consultant for the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) since May 2019, contributing expertise to federation-level programmes and structures. At a global level, he has served as a FIFA Coach Educator since May 2021, operating in a hybrid role connected to FIFA’s coach education and development work.

A major part of his professional identity is the translation of research into practical coaching tools. His content focus is strongly linked to decision-making in soccer, including a tactical analysis approach described as “Tactic Up”, designed to help coaches better understand and develop the behaviours that underpin effective in-game decisions. This positions his work at the intersection of tactical understanding, training design, and objective evaluation—supporting coaches in building clearer learning environments that connect game demands to daily practice.

Academically, Teoldo da Costa has continued to extend his expertise through postdoctoral study. He completed a Post-PhD in Sport Science at Brunel University of London (September 2014–August 2015), and more recently undertook a Post-PhD in Neuroscience at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (July 2023–July 2024), strengthening the scientific foundations that inform his interest in perception, cognition, and decision processes in football performance.

Academic Institution: Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV). Practical Affiliation (current & previous): Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF); CONMEBOL; FIFA. Languages Spoken: English, Portuguese. Content Feature: Decision making in soccer and tactical analysis concepts (Tactic Up). Area: Training methodology and evaluation.