Richard Costa

Richard Costa (born 5 January 1992) is an Indian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Churchill Brothers in the I-League. He is currently the captain of the team.

Richard Costa

Personal information
Date of birth	(1992-01-05) 5 January 1992 (age 33)
Place of birth	Navelim, Goa, India
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Churchill Brothers
Number	33
Youth career
	Churchill Brothers
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2012–2017	Churchill Brothers	20	(0)
2017–2018	East Bengal	0	(0)
2018–	Churchill Brothers	79	(3)
International career
2014	India U20	4	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13 March 2024

Early life

Costa was born in Navelim, a town in the Indian State of Goa. He began playing football at an early age and played for a local club, Juniors Salunkas, as a child. He idolized Goan footballer and midfielder Climax Lawrence, and began playing in that position. Costa was included in the under-20 side of Churchill Brothers after he impressed the owners of the team who saw him play at a local match.^[1]

Career

Churchill Brothers

Costa, after going through his youth career at Churchill Brothers,^[2] made his debut for the senior squad in the I-League on 11 October 2012 against ONGC at the Fatorda Stadium, coming on as a 68th-minute substitute for Bikramjit Singh in a match that his team won 5–0.^[3]

East Bengal

In May 2017, East Bengal announced the signing of Richard Costa and Surabuddin Mullick from Churchill Brothers.^[4] On 12 January 2018, East Bengal released Gabriel Fernandes and Richard Costa from their squad.^[5]

Churchill Brothers

Costa returned to his previous club Churchill Brothers after he got released from East Bengal.^[5] He scored his first goal in the 2023–24 season, on 22 November 2023, a headed goal in the 4–0 against TRAU FC. He also had one assist in the game.^[6] He scored again four days later, against Gokulam Kerala, that ended in a 1–1 draw.^[7]

Career statistics

Club

As of 13 March 2024^[8]

Club	Season	League			Cup		AFC		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Churchill Brothers	2012–13	I-League	1	0	0	0	1[a]	0	2	0
	2013–14		3	0	0	0	4[a]	0	7	0
	2016–17		16	0	3[b]	0	–		19	0
	Total		20	0	3	0	5	0	28	0
East Bengal	2017–18	I-League	0	0	0	0	–		0	0
Churchill Brothers	2017–18		8	0	2[c]	0	–		10	0
	2018–19		16	0	0	0	–		16	0
	2019–20		4	0	0	0	–		4	0
	2020–21		6	0	0	0	–		6	0
	2021–22		18	0	0	0	–		18	0
	2022–23		10	1	4[c]	0	–		14	1
	2023–24		17	2	0	0	–		17	2
	Total		79	3	6	0	0	0	85	3
Career total			99	3	9	0	5	0	113	3

1. Appearance(s) in AFC Cup
2. Appearance(s) in Federation Cup
3. Appearance(s) in Super Cup

Honours

India U20 (Goa India)

• Lusofonia Games Gold medal: 2014^[9]