Neymar’s father appointed Santos chief executive until end of 2026

Neymar’s father has been appointed chief executive of Santos until the end of 2026, with the Brazilian club saying he will help oversee football, marketing and new commercial projects.

He will also become president of the club’s academy, which is responsible for identifying emerging talent.

The appointment comes only two months after Neymar’s father helped Santos resolve a registration issue that had prevented the club from completing new signings.

Santos said at the time that the agreement had been completed with support from NR Sports, the Brazilian sports marketing and image-management company founded by Neymar’s parents in 2006 to manage their son’s career.

The club said the arrangement provided immediate financial liquidity, while Santos and NR Sports would jointly negotiate the remaining unallocated sponsorship rights on the team’s shirt.

ESPN reported that NR Sports paid Santos €2m to settle the case and allow the club to begin registering new players.

According to Brazilian outlet Globo, the company received space on Santos’ shirts, which it could either use itself or sell in the market to recover the money it had provided.

Although the spaces had not yet been sold, NR Sports chose to display its own brands. The most prominent feature was an image of Pele on the chest, positioned between the sponsor’s logo and the club crest.

NR Sports placed its name on the front of the shirt, while the back carried the logo of the Neymar Jr Institute below the player’s name and number. The socks and both the front and back of the shorts remain available to the company.

Under the agreement, NR Sports will first recover its payment through advertising income before sharing subsequent profits with Santos.

The resolution of the registration problem enabled Santos to sign Everton from Flamengo, Arthur Melo from Juventus, Rodinei from Olympiacos, Lima from Fluminense and Philippe Coutinho on free transfers.

Santos are ninth in the Brazilian league with 47 points, seven points behind the positions that qualify for the Copa Libertadores.

The club were eliminated early from both the Copa Sudamericana and the Copa do Brasil, ending their hopes of winning a trophy in 2026.