Víctor Manuel Vucetich

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Vucetich and the second or maternal family name is Rojas.

Víctor Manuel Vucetich Rojas (born 25 June 1955) is a Mexican former professional football manager and player.

Víctor Manuel Vucetich

Vucetich as Monterrey manager in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Víctor Manuel Vucetich Rojas
Date of birth	(1955-06-25) 25 June 1955 (age 70)
Place of birth	Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position	Defensive midfielder
Youth career
	Universidad Nacional
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1978–1981	Atlante	76	(0)
1981–1983	Oaxtepec	32	(1)
Total		108	(1)
Managerial career
1988–1989	Potros Neza
1990–1993	León
1993–1995	Tecos
1995–1996	Tigres UANL
1996–1997	Cruz Azul
1997–1998	Tecos
1999	León
1999–2000	Tigres UANL
2001–2002	La Piedad
2002–2003	Puebla
2003–2004	Pachuca
2005–2006	Veracruz
2007	Chiapas
2009–2013	Monterrey
2013	Mexico
2015–2017	Querétaro
2019–2020	Querétaro
2020–2021	Guadalajara
2022–2023	Monterrey
2024–2025	Mazatlán
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

With a managerial career that stretches over three decades, Vucetich stands among the most accomplished figures in Mexican football. Over the years, he led fourteen different Mexican clubs, capturing five Primera División championships with four of them. In total, he oversaw 930 matches in the top division, ranking third all-time for the most games managed in the league’s history.^[1]

Because of his many achievements with multiple clubs, he is popularly nicknamed by the Mexican press, players and fans as El Rey Midas (King Midas) because "everything he touches turns to gold".^[2][3]

Career

Early Managerial Success and Rise to Prominence (1988–1994)

Vucetich began his managerial career in Mexico’s Segunda División with Potros Neza, where he achieved promotion to the Primera División during the 1988–89 season. Following this success, the club was sold and relocated, leaving Vucetich without a managerial position.^[4]

He subsequently returned to the Segunda División to take charge of León, which had recently been relegated. In the 1989–90 season, he led León back to the Primera División. In his first top-flight campaign, Vucetich produced encouraging results, and in the following tournament, he secured his first league championship as a manager when León triumphed over Puebla in the final.

During the 1993–94 season, Vucetich was appointed head coach of Tecos UAG. Remarkably, in his first season with the club, he guided them to the league championship title.^[5]

Challenges and Continued Achievements (1995–2008)

During the 1995–96 season, Vucetich joined Tigres UANL with the primary objective of preserving the club’s status in Mexico’s top division. Under his leadership, the team secured the Copa México title; however, despite this achievement, Tigres were relegated at the conclusion of the season.^[6] In the following campaign, Vucetich assumed the managerial role at Cruz Azul. He guided the team to a Copa México title.

Over the subsequent six years, Vucetich held second tenures with Tecos, León, and Tigres, in addition to managing La Piedad and later Puebla. During this period, his results were mixed.

During the Apertura 2003 tournament, he took charge of Pachuca and led the team to the league championship in his debut tournament with the club. After departing Pachuca, Vucetich took a brief hiatus from coaching before returning to the sidelines with Veracruz, and later with Chiapas, although these later ventures yielded limited success.

Monterrey Glory, National Team, and Final Years (2009–2025)

In the Clausura 2009 tournament, Vucetich was appointed head coach of Monterrey. His tenure began strongly, with the team reaching the quarterfinals, and in the subsequent Apertura 2009 season, Monterrey captured the league title by defeating Cruz Azul in the final.

In the Apertura 2010, Vucetich guided Monterrey to another league championship, overcoming Santos Laguna in the final—his fifth and final domestic league title. In the following tournament, he achieved his first international success, winning the CONCACAF Champions League, a feat he repeated in the two subsequent editions.^[7]

In September 2013, Vucetich was appointed manager of the Mexico national team. However, after recording one victory and one defeat, he was relieved of his duties the following month.^[8]

In the later stages of his career, Vucetich managed Querétaro, Guadalajara, and Mazatlán, though he was unable to replicate the earlier successes that had established him as one of the most accomplished managers in Mexican football history. He announced his retirement in July 2025.^[9]

Managerial statistics

As of match played 19 April 2025

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Neza		1988	1989	47	22	14	11	66	45	+21	046.81
León		25 September 1990	30 June 1993	185	80	58	47	270	184	+86	043.24
Tecos		1 July 1993	30 June 1995	88	39	32	17	121	86	+35	044.32
Tigres UANL		1 July 1995	30 June 1996	45	17	16	12	57	51	+6	037.78
Cruz Azul		1 July 1996	9 March 1997	37	15	9	13	60	49	+11	040.54
Tecos		1 July 1997	17 August 1998	41	14	11	16	53	62	−9	034.15
León		1 January 1999	30 June 1999	17	5	1	11	19	33	−14	029.41
Tigres UANL		17 September 1999	30 June 2000	29	9	12	8	46	36	+10	031.03
La Piedad		5 October 2001	30 June 2002	29	15	3	11	48	37	+11	051.72
Puebla		16 September 2002	3 March 2003	19	6	2	11	21	33	−12	031.58
Pachuca		1 July 2003	30 June 2004	46	20	15	11	71	60	+11	043.48
Veracruz		4 March 2005	30 June 2005	10	2	4	4	11	17	−6	020.00
Veracruz		3 March 2006	3 September 2006	16	6	5	5	17	20	−3	037.50
Chiapas		15 February 2007	7 September 2007	19	5	6	8	18	31	−13	026.32
Monterrey		9 January 2009	26 August 2013	244	114	71	59	394	273	+121	046.72
Mexico		12 September 2013	18 October 2013	2	1	0	1	3	3	+0	050.00
Querétaro		24 February 2015	31 January 2017	91	35	24	32	130	116	+14	038.46
Querétaro		18 February 2019	2 June 2020	47	19	9	19	64	65	−1	040.43
Guadalajara		13 August 2020	19 September 2021	45	17	17	11	54	50	+4	037.78
Monterrey		2 March 2022	28 May 2023	54	31	12	11	89	49	+40	057.41
Mazatlán		7 May 2024	13 May 2025	39	8	15	16	33	50	−17	020.51
Total				1,150	480	336	334	1,645	1,350	+295	041.74

Honours

Manager

Potros Neza

• Segunda División: 1988–89

León

• Primera División: 1991–92
• Segunda División: 1989–90

Tecos

• Primera División: 1993–94

Tigres UANL

• Copa México: 1995–96

Cruz Azul

• Copa México: 1996–97

Pachuca

• Primera División: Apertura 2003

Monterrey

• Primera División: Apertura 2009, Apertura 2010
• InterLiga: 2010
• CONCACAF Champions League: 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13
• FIFA Club World Cup: Third place 2012

Querétaro

• Copa MX: Apertura 2016

Individual

• Mexican Primera División Manager of the tournament: 1991–92, 1993–94, 2009 Apertura, 2010 Apertura