General · EdgepediaSeptember 17, 20264 min read

João Costa (footballer, born 2005)

João Costa (full name João Gabriel e Costa Cesco; born 2005 in Umuarama, Brazil) is a Portuguese-Brazilian footballer who plays as a left-footed winger or forward for Cruzeiro, on loan from Al-Ettifaq of Saudi Arabia. He came through the youth systems of Corinthians and Palmeiras in Brazil, made his senior debut at Roma in Serie A, and moved to Saudi Arabia before returning to Brazil at age 21.¹^•²

Key fact	Detail
Born	2005, Umuarama, Brazil¹
Playing identity	178 cm, left-footed, winger/forward; plays for Cruzeiro³^•⁴
Nationality	Portuguese-Brazilian ("luso-brasileiro")²
Youth clubs	Corinthians and Palmeiras, in the same generation as Endrick⁵
Roma record	3 Serie A appearances, 14 minutes, in the 2023-24 season¹
Al-Ettifaq record	4 goals and 3 assists in 44 matches over two seasons; contract to June 2028²
Current deal	One-year loan to Cruzeiro announced 6 August 2026, with part of his economic rights fixed for purchase²

Youth career in Brazil

João Costa was born in Umuarama, in the interior of Paraná. He is the younger brother of João Victor Cesto, a defender formed in the youth academies of São Paulo and Palmeiras.⁵

According to the sports outlet ge, he was first spotted by São Paulo but chose to continue his development at Palmeiras, where he was part of the same generation of attackers as Endrick, the forward later signed by Real Madrid. He then moved to Corinthians, still at youth level, before transferring to Europe.⁵

Roma

João Costa joined Roma of Italy as a teenager. His senior league record there is modest: in the 2023-24 Serie A season he made 3 appearances, all as a substitute, totaling 14 minutes, with no goals and one yellow card.¹ His exposure at the club still included training under José Mourinho, a detail the Brazilian press highlighted when he later changed clubs.⁵

Al-Ettifaq

Roma sold João Costa to Al-Ettifaq of the Saudi Pro League two seasons before his 2026 transfer to Cruzeiro. Across his spell there he registered four goals and three assists in 44 matches, and his contract with the Saudi club runs to June 2028.² He was still taking part in Al-Ettifaq's pre-season in Saudi Arabia when the move to Brazil was arranged.⁶

Loan to Cruzeiro

Cruzeiro announced the signing on 6 August 2026. The deal is a one-season loan from Al-Ettifaq, with part of the player's economic rights fixed for a future purchase.² The negotiation led Cruzeiro to abandon its pursuit of the Uruguayan Brian Rodríguez of Club América.²

The transfer filled an immediate gap in the squad: Luis Sinisterra and Gabriel Pec were injured, and Cruzeiro had also signed Wesley, formerly of Corinthians, and Lucho Rodríguez, formerly of Bahia, on loan from Saudi clubs.² On arrival in Belo Horizonte, the player said he had completed a strong pre-season and was ready to play, and he called the move a dream realized, citing the chance to compete in the Copa Libertadores with Cruzeiro.⁶ It is his first experience of professional football in Brazil.⁵

National team eligibility

João Costa has been connected with both of his countries' national programs. In 2024 he received his first call-up from the Brazilian national team, and his mother has publicly explained his appearances in Brazil and Portugal setups; his trajectory has involved clubs in Brazil, Italy, Portugal, and Saudi Arabia.⁵

Other players of the same name

The name João Costa born in 2005 also identifies other professionals tracked by databases, including a Brazilian central midfielder who joined Botafogo FC of São Paulo state (Série B) in April 2024, born 2005 in Franca, and a Portuguese player listed with Benfica youth; statistical sites such as FotMob, FBref, Sofascore, and Transfermarkt assign different player IDs to them.⁷^•⁸

References

Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026