| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo | ||
| Date of birth | (1996-05-27)27 May 1996 (age 29) | ||
| Place of birth | São Paulo, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Atlético Mineiro | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2017 | Atlético Mineiro | 3 | (0) |
| 2017 | →Democrata (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Kauno Žalgiris | 39 | (14) |
| 2019–2020 | OFI | 34 | (11) |
| 2020–2022 | Al-Wasl | 23 | (10) |
| 2021–2022 | →Gaziantep (loan) | 34 | (8) |
| 2022–2023 | Gaziantep | 22 | (7) |
| 2023–2025 | İstanbul Başakşehir | 80 | (18) |
| 2025 | Johor Darul Ta'zim | 6 | (6) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2025 | Malaysia | 3 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 25 September 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 8 September 2025 | |||
João Vitor Brandão Figueiredo (born 27 May 1996) is a Brazilian professionalfootballer who last played as aforward forMalaysia Super League clubJohor Darul Ta'zim. He representedMalaysia at international level three times; however, he is currently serving a suspension from all football related activities after being sanctioned byFIFA in September 2025 for forging documents related to his Malaysian ancestry.[1]
João made his league debut for Atlético Mineiro againstEC Vitória on 29 May 2016.[2]
João scored on his league debut for Democrata againstAmérica Mineiro on 29 January 2017.[3]
João made his league debut for Kauno Žalgiris againstAtlantas on 29 April 2018, scoring in the 87th minute.[4]
On 2 August 2019,Superleague clubOFI officially announced the acquisition of Figueiredo on a three-year deal for a fee of €100,000.[5] He made his debut for the club againstPanathinaikos on 31 August 2019.[6] João scored his first goal for the club againstAsteras Tripolis on 29 September 2019, scoring in the 56th minute.[7] His goal againstLamia secured their place in the championship playoffs.[8]
On 4 July 2020, he completed an exquisite team effort and scored in a 2–2 home draw againstPAOK.[9] He scored in the last game of the season, a 3–2 away defeat, againstPanathinaikos, on 19 July 2020.[10]
Figueiredo, on 21 September 2020, completed his transfer inAl Wasl, signing a three-year contract with the Dubai based team, in a €1 million deal.[11] He made his debut for the club againstBaniyas on 16 October 2020.[12] He scored his first goal for the club againstKalba on 4 November 2020, scoring in the 8th minute.[13]
On 6 June 2022, Figueiredo moved toGaziantep on a permanent basis after playing there on loan previously and signed a three-year contract.[14] He made his debut for the club againstBeşiktaş on 21 August 2021.[15] João scored his first goal for the club againstSivasspor on 18 September 2021, scoring in the 90th+2nd minute.[16]
On 17 February 2023, following Gaziantep's withdrawal from the2022–23 season on account of the2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake, Figueiredo signed forİstanbul Başakşehir on a three-and-a-half-year deal.[17] He made his debut for the club againstAlanyaspor on 3 March 2023.[18] João scored his first goals for the club againstGiresunspor on 24 April 2023, scoring in the 25th and 45th+2nd minute.[19]
On 6 July 2025, Malaysian clubJohor Darul Ta’zim announced the signing of Figueiredo.[20]
Figueiredo received his first call-up to theMalaysia national team for the2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification match againstVietnam.[21] He made his international debut on 10 June 2025 at theBukit Jalil National Stadium, scoring the opening goal in Malaysia’s 4–0 win, with his goal coming in the 48th minute following a run into the penalty area, with the shot deflecting off a defender before looping over the goalkeeper and into the net.[22] Prior to his international debut for Malaysia, Figueiredo had previously been invited to join a seniorBrazil national team training camp in 2018. Although he did not feature in any official matches, the experience allowed him to train alongside several established players, includingGabriel Jesus.[23]
In September 2025,Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), Figueiredo, and six other Malaysian heritage players were sanctioned byFIFA due to falsification and forgery of documents regarding the seven players' eligibility to play for Malaysia in the third round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers against Vietnam. Each players were finedCHF 2,000 (around MYR 10,560) and were suspended from all football related activities for 12 months. FAM has confirmed it will file an appeal against FIFA's ruling.[24]
He was given the nickname "Ipin" in reference to one of the titular characters from the popular Malaysian animated seriesUpin & Ipin due to his similar personality.
FIFA recently launched an investigation through its Disciplinary Committee where it was found that Figueiredo's grandmother was born inAbre Campo,Brazil, notJohor, Malaysia, which meant Figueiredo had illegally played for Malaysia as he had no Malaysian ancestry.[25]
| Club | Season | League | Cup[a] | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Kauno Žalgiris | 2018 | A Lyga | 22 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 4 |
| 2019 | A Lyga | 17 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 20 | 10 | |
| Total | 39 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 | 14 | ||
| OFI Crete | 2019–20 | Super League Greece | 33 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 12 |
| 2019–20 | Super League Greece | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 34 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 2 | ||
| Al Wasl | 2020–21 | UAE Pro League | 23 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 12 |
| Gaziantep | 2021–22 | Süper Lig | 34 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 10 |
| 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 22 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 9 | |
| Total | 56 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 64 | 19 | ||
| Başakşehir | 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 12 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 4 |
| 2023–24 | Süper Lig | 34 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 8 | |
| 2024–25 | Süper Lig | 34 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 11[c] | 2 | 48 | 12 | |
| Total | 80 | 18 | 11 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 102 | 24 | ||
| Career total | 232 | 68 | 30 | 11 | 14 | 2 | 276 | 81 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malaysia | 2025 | 3 | 3 |
| Total | 3 | 3 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 June 2025 | Bukit Jalil National Stadium,Bukit Jalil, Malaysia |  Vietnam | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| 2 | 4 September 2025 |  Singapore | 2–0 | 2–1 | Friendly | |
| 3 | 8 September 2025 | Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, Johor, Malaysia |  Palestine | 1–0 | 1–0 |
Johor Darul Ta'zim