It would have been easy for Filipa Patão to stay in her home country of Portugal.
That’s where she led the senior women’s team of the club Benfica to five straight titles in the Campeonato Nacional, Portugal’s top women’s soccer league.
But speaking in her first press conference as the first-ever head coach of Boston Legacy FC on Thursday, Patão admitted that she started to get a little comfortable after all the club’s success. And she didn’t like that.
So, Patão went in about as opposite a direction as she could, traveling across the ocean to lead a team that has yet to play a game in the National Women’s Soccer League, but still has the weight of expectations that a city like Boston demands.
“I’m very excited because I know the project is ambitious,” she said. “I know that I have an opportunity to help to build something different, something great, and create a legacy.”.
Patão, who Legacy FC introduced as its first head coach in June, had led Benfica’s women’s team since 2020 and picked up a 156-28-15 win-loss-draw record.
During her time with Benfica, the club made it to the quarterfinals of 2023-24 UEFA Women’s Champions League and the second round the following season. She was a nominee for the Women’s Coach of the Year award at the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony.
Now, Patão is tasked with bringing that same success to Boston’s newest pro team.
“She is a coach who loves to develop players and loves to win, and that attitude is very evident in the way she is approaching our inaugural 2026 season head-on,” Legacy FC controlling owner Jennifer Epstein said in a statement when the team named Patão as head coach. “We can’t wait to watch her build Boston’s next championship team.”
Boston Legacy FC general manager Domènec Guasch said before landing on Patão, the hiring process took more than six months and started with more than 60 coaches. He said the new coach brings more than just her results and titles with her to Boston.
“For us, it’s also her track record in developing players. Not only young, right, but also players of all ages,” he said, also noting Patão’s success in building a team culture that’s both healthy and winning. “And a coach ... with very similar ideas to ours, similar style that aligned with our club’s and what we’re looking for.”
There’s still a lot of work to do for Patão and the club. The team is in the midst of putting together its inaugural roster ahead of its rookie season next year.
Patão says she’s aware of the responsibility that’s in her hands. But for someone who left the comfort of home for the unknown of an expansion team, that pressure is no problem.
“I’m here 100%,” Patão said. “I’m here knowing that it’s going to be tough, going to be difficult. But I always say ... you need to die with memories, not with dreams. So, I’m here to create these memories, and I think that’s going to be awesome.”
