Raphael Veiga
Brazilian footballer (born 1995)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Raphael Cavalcante Veiga (born 19 June 1995) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Liga MX club America, on loan from Palmeiras.
 Veiga with Palmeiras in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Raphael Cavalcante Veiga[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 19 June 1995[1] | ||
| Place of birth | São Paulo, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Club América | ||
| Number | 23 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2006 | Corinthians | ||
| 2007 | Fundação Mercedes-Benz | ||
| 2008 | São Paulo | ||
| 2008–2009 | Portuguesa | ||
| 2010–2013 | Audax | ||
| 2013–2016 | Coritiba | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016 | Coritiba | 24 | (3) |
| 2017– | Palmeiras | 384 | (109) |
| 2018 | → Atlético Paranaense (loan) | 48 | (9) |
| 2026– | → América (loan) | 12 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023 | Brazil | 6 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 5 March 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 21 November 2023 | |||
Club career
Coritiba
Born in São Paulo, Veiga represented Portuguesa and Audax as a youth before joining Coritiba in September 2013.[2] He spent two years in the youth setup before being promoted to the main squad in February 2016.[3]
Veiga made his professional debut on 10 March 2016, coming on as a second-half substitute for Thiago Lopes in a 3–0 Primeira Liga home win against Avaí.[4] He made his Série A debut on 23 July, starting in a 1–0 away win against Santa Cruz.[5]
Veiga scored his first goal as a senior on 3 August 2016, but in a 1–3 loss at Vitória.
Palmeiras
After 19 league appearances and three goals, Veiga was sold to Palmeiras on 19 December, signing a five-year contract.[6]
Loan to Atlético Paranaense
On 2 January 2018, after being sparingly used by Verdão, Veiga moved to Atlético Paranaense on a one-year loan deal.[7] While on loan, he became a regular starter, and scored seven goals as the club finished seventh; he was also an important unit in the 2018 Copa Sudamericana, as Furacão ended up champions.
Breakthrough
Upon his return to Palmeiras in 2019, he initially struggled for playing time. His fortunes shifted dramatically in 2020 under managers Vanderlei Luxemburgo and Abel Ferreira, he became a key goal scorer in decisive matches and an integral figure in the club's trophy-laden campaign, which culminated in Copa Libertadores glory.
Between 2021 and 2022, Veiga delivered standout performances in major finals, such as the Copa Libertadores against Flamengo, the FIFA Club World Cup against Chelsea, and the Recopa Sudamericana. He also became the club’s top scorer in the Libertadores and captained the team for the first time. A serious ankle injury in 2022 temporarily interrupted his progress, but he returned in 2023 to play a central role in further triumphs, including the Supercopa do Brasil.
In 2024, Veiga reached significant milestones: surpassing 100 career goals, becoming Palmeiras’ leading scorer of the 21st century alongside Dudu, and completing 300 appearances for the club. Later that year, he scored his 100th goal for Palmeiras.[8]
The 2025 season brought challenges, with a dip in form and more time spent as a substitute. Despite this, he contributed decisive goals in the Copa Libertadores semifinal against LDU, helping the team overturn a first-leg deficit and advance to the final.[9]
Loan to Club América
On 3 February 2026, Veiga joined Club América on a one-year loan.[10]
International career
Veiga received his first call-up to the Brazil national team in March 2023 for a friendly match away against Morocco. Veiga was subbed on in the 65th minute in a 2–1 loss.
Veiga was called up again in June 2023, where he was used as a sub in both of the Seleção's matches during that international break, during a 4-1 against Guinea and a 4-2 loss against Senegal, both being friendly matches.
In September 2023, Veiga was included in Brazil's squad for their matches against Bolivia and Peru in the CONMEBOL 2026 World Cup qualifying matches. He was an unused sub during Brazil's 5-1 victory over Bolivia, but was subbed on in stoppage time in their match against Peru, which Brazil won 1-0.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 1 November 2024[11]
| Club | Season | League | State league[a] | Copa do Brasil | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Coritiba | 2016 | Série A | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 21 | 3 | |
| Palmeiras | 2017 | Série A | 11 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | — | 20 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6[c] | 1 | — | 30 | 5 | |||
| 2020 | 26 | 11 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 10[c] | 2 | 2[d] | 0 | 55 | 18 | ||
| 2021 | 31 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12[c] | 5 | 3[e] | 3 | 52 | 18 | ||
| 2022 | 19 | 3 | 13 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 9[c] | 6 | 4[d] | 3 | 48 | 21 | ||
| 2023 | 31 | 9 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 10[c] | 3 | 1[f] | 2 | 60 | 18 | ||
| 2024 | 34 | 11 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 1[f] | 0 | 58 | 20 | ||
| 2025 | 25 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 4[f] | 0 | 53 | 7 | ||
| 2026 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0[f] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 196 | 49 | 80 | 22 | 24 | 7 | 64 | 22 | 20 | 9 | 384 | 109 | ||
| Atlético Paranaense (loan) | 2018 | Série A | 31 | 7 | — | 7 | 0 | 10[g] | 2 | — | 48 | 9 | ||
| Career total | 246 | 59 | 80 | 22 | 32 | 7 | 74 | 24 | 21 | 9 | 453 | 121 | ||
- Includes Campeonato Paranaense, Campeonato Paulista
- Appearance in Primeira Liga
- Appearance(s) in Copa Libertadores
- Appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
- One appearance and two goals in Supercopa do Brasil, two appearances and one goal in Recopa Sudamericana
- Appearance in Supercopa do Brasil
- Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
Honours
Club
Palmeiras
- Copa Libertadores: 2020, 2021
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2022, 2023
- Copa do Brasil: 2020
- Campeonato Paulista: 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024
- Recopa Sudamericana: 2022
- Supercopa do Brasil: 2023
Atlético Paranaense
Individual
- Copa do Brasil Golden Ball: 2020
- Copa do Brasil Team of the final: 2020
- Copa Libertadores Team of the Year: 2021
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Team of the Year: 2021
- Troféu Mesa Redonda Team of the Year: 2021,[12] 2023, 2024[13]
- Bola de Prata: 2021, 2023
- South American Team of the Year: 2021
- Man of the Match the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup: Palmeiras 2x0 Al Ahly
- Campeonato Paulista Team of the Year: 2022, 2023[14]
- Man of the Match the Supercopa do Brasil: 2023
- Campeonato Paulista Best Player: 2023[14]
