After row, São Paulo send Paulinho to Portugal, may recoup 'ban debt' | OneFootball

São Paulo have arranged the loan transfer of 21-year-old forward Paulinho Venuto to União Torreense, in Portugal’s second division. The loan deal runs until June 2027 and includes a purchase option with fixed amounts and percentages that could bring approximately R$6.5 million (€1.1 million) into the São Paulo club’s coffers.

Initially, the Alagoas-born player will join the Portuguese club’s under-23 squad, going through an observation period before a possible promotion to the senior team. Despite playing in the national second division, Torreense secured a place in the Europa League after winning the Portuguese Cup by defeating Sporting.

How does Tricolor benefit?

If it chooses to sign Paulinho permanently at the end of the agreed period, the European club will immediately pay €600,000 (around R$3.5 million) for 60% of the player’s economic rights.

The contract model also establishes that the remaining 40% of the player’s rights may be acquired gradually: 20% in the first year after the purchase for €200,000 (R$1.2 million), and the final 20% in the second year for another €300,000 (R$1.8 million). That total ends up being what the club struggled so much to raise to settle its debt with Lazio over Marcos Antonio and get out of FIFA’s transfer ban.

Controversy in deal with Botafogo-SP

Before reaching an agreement with the European side, the Tricolor striker had been close to joining Botafogo-SP. The initial negotiation provided for the player’s permanent transfer free of charge, with São Paulo retaining 40% of the rights to any future sale.

The transaction sparked negative backlash among fans on social media, leading São Paulo’s board to reassess the terms and propose a straightforward loan without a purchase option to the club from Ribeirão Preto.

After that, the proposal submitted by Torreense was viewed by the Tricolor hierarchy as more advantageous from both a financial and sporting standpoint.

History at São Paulo

A standout from São Paulo’s youth academy, Paulinho was the club’s top scorer in the most recent edition of the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior. His season was affected by a knee ligament strain suffered in the final of the youth tournament, an injury that kept him out for about two months.

In the senior squad — where he made his debut under coach Hernán Crespo — the forward played only once this year, against São Bernardo in the Campeonato Paulista. With no room under Roger Machado and later under Dorival Júnior, the player, now over the under-20 age limit, was cleared to look for new opportunities on the market.

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