Caio Lucas

Caio Lucas Fernandes (born 19 April 1994), known as Caio Lucas or just Caio , is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for UAE Pro League club Sharjah. Born in Brazil, he represents the United Arab Emirates at international level.

Club career Born in Araçatuba, São Paulo, Caio Lucas started playing football in 2002, aged 8, at local clubs SMER Bosque Araçatuba and América-SP. He then played for São Paulo's youth teams from 2005 to 2009 but could not become professional, so he left the club and unsuccessfully tried to join rivals Santos and Palmeiras before returning to América. In 2011, when he was prepared to give up on football, he was discovered by a Japanese university that was playing in Birigui, Brazil. Almost aged 17, he moved to Japan that year to enroll in Chiba Kokusai High School in Kimitsu, where he played for three years.

After his graduation, Caio Lucas joined the J1 League club, the Kashima Antlers in 2014. In his first professional season, under the coaching of Toninho Cerezo, Caio scored eight goals as Kashima Antlers qualified for the AFC Champions League. Moreover, he was named J. League's Young Player of the Year in 2014 and won the 2016 J1 League and 2015 J.League Cup. In 2019, following a three-year spell with Emirati club Al Ain, with whom he reached the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup Final, Caio signed a four-year contract with Portuguese club Benfica.

On 23 January 2020, Sharjah signed Caio Lucas from Benfica on loan for 18 months.

International career Born in Brazil, Caio Lucas became a naturalized Emirati and was called up to the United Arab Emirates national team for the first time by manager Paulo Bento in March 2025 for 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches. He made his debut for the UAE in a 2–0 loss to Iran on 20 March.

Career statistics Club

International

United Arab Emirates score listed first, score column indicates score after each Caio Lucas goal

Honours Kashima Antlers J1 League: 2016 J.League Cup: 2015

Al Ain UAE Pro League: 2017–18 UAE President's Cup: 2017–18 FIFA Club World Cup runner-up: 2018

Sharjah UAE President's Cup: 2021–22, 2022–23 UAE League Cup: 2022–23 UAE Super Cup: 2022, 2025 AFC Champions League Two: 2024–25 Qatar-UAE Super Cup: 2026

Individual J.League Rookie of the Year: 2014 FIFA Club World Cup Silver Ball: 2018 AFC Champions League Two Most Valuable Player: 2024–25