Víctor Manuel Vucetich

Víctor Manuel Vucetich Rojas is a Mexican former professional football manager and player.
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.
Because of his many achievements with multiple clubs, he is popularly nicknamed by the Mexican press, players and fans as El Rey Midas because "everything he touches turns to gold".

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.
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.

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. 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.
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.
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.