Francisco Soares

Nacional On 27 January 2015, Soares moved abroad for the first time in his career after signing with Primeira Liga side Nacional, still owned by CSP. He made his debut on 21 February, replacing Lucas João in a 3–1 away loss against Braga.

Soares scored his first goal abroad on 20 April 2015, equalising the 1–1 Madeira derby at Marítimo. The following 20 March, he scored a brace in a 3–2 home win over Vitória de Guimarães.

Vitória Guimarães On 25 May 2016, Soares signed for Vitória de Guimarães. He made his debut for his new team on 14 August, starting in a 1–0 home loss to Braga, and scored his first goal 12 days later in a 5–3 win against Paços de Ferreira also at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques, through a penalty.

On 4 November 2016, Soares scored a double in a 2–1 home defeat of former club Nacional. He finished his spell in Minho with 22 official appearances and nine goals.

Porto On 23 January 2017, Soares signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Porto, with a €40 million clause. His first match took place on 4 February, when he started and netted twice in a 2–1 home victory over Sporting CP.

Soares made his UEFA Champions League debut on 22 February 2017, starting in a 2–0 home loss to Juventus in the round of 16. In his first full season, he scored eight goals from 24 games to help the club to win the national championship after a five-year wait.

Soares was not initially included in the 2018–19 Champions League squad by manager Sérgio Conceição, due to injury. On 18 January 2019, he put three past Chaves in a 4–1 away victory, his tally of 15 over the campaign eventually being the best for Porto and fourth-best in the league. On 25 May he opened the scoring in the final of the Taça de Portugal and also converted his team's first shot in the penalty shootout after the 2–2 draw, but Sporting were victorious; he dedicated his goal to goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who had suffered a heart attack weeks earlier.

On 27 February 2020, Soares was sent off for the first time in his career as the side lost 3–1 at home to Bayer Leverkusen (5–2 aggregate) in the last 32 of the UEFA Europa League, for elbowing Jonathan Tah in the face.

Tianjin TEDA Soares moved to the Chinese Super League in September 2020, agreeing to a three-year and three-month deal at Tianjin TEDA. The transfer fee was estimated at around €10 million, as was his total salary.

Olympiacos On 31 May 2021, Soares joined Olympiacos of the Super League Greece on a three-year contract. On 22 September, he scored twice in a 4–1 home win against Apollon Smyrnis. On 22 December, he repeated the feat in the 2–0 defeat of Levadiakos in the round of 16 of the Greek Football Cup, following assists from Mathieu Valbuena.

Botafogo Soares returned to Brazil in August 2022 after seven years, with the 31-year-old signing for Botafogo. He made his Campeonato Brasileiro Série A debut at the age of 31 on 4 September, starting in a 3–1 win at Fortaleza; thirteen days later, he scored his first goal to conclude a 2–0 win over Coritiba at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos. He finished the season with six goals from 14 games, the Gloriosos second top scorer with one behind Erison despite his late arrival.

In 2023, Soares scored a career-best 29 goals despite struggling with injuries in the latter stages of the season. In the following campaign, he won both the Copa Libertadores and the Brazilian League, but lost his starting spot after Igor Jesus was acquired.

Santos

On 24 January 2025, Soared joined Santos on a three-year deal. He made his debut the following day in a 2–1 away loss to Velo Clube, and scored his first goal on 5 February, opening the 1–1 home draw against Botafogo-SP through a penalty.

On 20 February 2026, Soares was loaned to fellow top-division Mirassol for the season. On 18 July, he left after terminating his contract with Santos due to unpaid wages.

Career statistics

Honours Botafogo-PB Copa Paraíba: 2010

CSP Copa Paraíba: 2012

Lucena Campeonato Paraibano Second Division: 2014

Porto Primeira Liga: 2017–18, 2019–20

Olympiacos Super League Greece: 2021–22 Taça Rio: 2023, 2024 Copa Libertadores: 2024

Individual Copa do Brasil top scorer: 2023 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Player of the Month: April 2023, May 2023, June 2023, July 2023