Sport Evolution Alliance team combines highly specialised experts in the field of Project Management, Monitoring and Implementation, Research, Marketing and Dissemination, with a worldwide network of sport stakeholders. We are capable of working in different areas and contexts in the field of sport. The diversity of experiences and backgrounds of the team’s experts is an added value for our performance.

Rui Vieira
Rui Vieira is a founding partner and the Director of Sport Evolution Alliance. He has vast experience in Erasmus + Sport Programme, mainly managing European grants as Project Manager. His areas of expertise are dual career, social inclusion and equal opportunities, and awareness of the importance of health-enhancing physical activity.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in Sports Science, with a specialisation in training of psychological skills in elite athletes and in professional sport management, and a master’s degree in High-Performance Sport.
Rui Vieira was the Performance Director of the Portuguese Judo Federation, winning the only medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics for the country in all sports. He also was Performance Director in the Saudi Arabia Judo Federation and Technical Adviser in the Saudi Arabia Olympic Committee.
Tiago Ribeiro
Tiago Ribeiro is a founding partner and Audit Committee member of Sport Evolution Alliance. He is a researcher with experience in the sport management field and, in particular, on national and international sport events. His areas of expertise are social and educational capital, impacts and legacies through major sport events and video gaming environments. Tiago is also an expert in statistical modelling and latent growth.
He has a Ph.D. in Sport Management, and he has successfully completed the “Administration Post-doctorate Programme” at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He was also a research fellow in Olympics Management, co-funded by Carlos Chagas Foundation and “PhD Student Award Research Grant”, co-funded by Olympic Studies Centre. In 2022, Tiago received an honourable mention by the Portuguese Olympic Committee for his research focused on Olympic Education.
Tiago Ribeiro is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Human Kinetics at the University of Lisbon. For many years he has organised some of the most prestigious sport events in Portugal and Brazil, and he was also research manager at Augusto Motta University Centre. He is a member of the Portuguese Olympic Academy, Portuguese Sport Management Association and Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being.


Nuno Dias
Nuno Dias is a founding partner and Vice President of the General Assembly of Sport Evolution Alliance. He has vast experience in marketing, communication and project dissemination. His areas of expertise are dual career, sustainability and health and population.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences and he has also participated in the YODA Mentors Project, co-funded by the Erasmus + Programme. Currently, he is attending a master’s degree in Sport, Education and Physical Literacy. He is a member of the Pedagogical Council of the Faculty of Physical Education and Sport.
Nuno Dias is the current President of the Portuguese Karate Federation, one of the country’s biggest sport federations. He is also a professional journalist and a Karate, Judo and BJJ coach. He was a high-performance karate player, having recently been assigned as an EcoAthlete, being an ambassador for the awareness of climate change and environmental problems. Through the years he has acquired a worldwide network of sport stakeholders.
Thiago Santos
Thiago Santos is a founding partner and President of the Audit Committee of Sport Evolution Alliance. He is a researcher with vast experience in sport management, mainly managing national and international sport programs, including Erasmus + Sport projects, such as “Good Governance Needs to Access and Inclusion” and “EMPLOYS”. His areas of expertise are management, governance, and consumer behaviour in sports organisations. Thiago is also an expert in multifactorial research methods, validation of scales and qualitative research.
He holds a Ph.D. in Sport Management, and he has successfully completed the Post-doctorate in Physical Education at the Federal University of Paraná, Brazil.
Thiago Santos is an Assistant Professor at the Europeia University in Lisbon. Previously he was an invited Assistant Professor at The Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon and Leading Researcher at the Federal University of Paraná, Brazil. He has co-authored two books and received an honourable mention from the Portuguese Olympic Committee and the Millennium BCP Foundation. He is a member and former president of the Brazilian Association for Sport Management.


Luiz Haas
Luiz Haas is a founding partner and President of the General Assembly of Sport Evolution Alliance. He is a researcher with vast experience in sport management, mainly managing national and international sport programs, including Erasmus + Sport projects, such as “EMPLOYS”. His areas of expertise are management and governance of sport organisations and social responsibility.
He holds a master’s degree in Sport Management and currently he is a Ph.D. student in the Sociology and Sport Management Program at the Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon.
Luiz Haas works as an Assistant Professor at Europeia University in Lisbon, and he’s also a consultant in Sport Governance. He has recently worked at Brazilian research group on National Sports Governance Observer. He has organised many congresses and seminars regarding sport management and he is a member and former president of the Brazilian Association for Sport Management.
Miguel Nery
Miguel Nery is a partner and Vice President of the Audit Committee of Sport Evolution. He is a researcher with vast experience in sport management, mainly managing national and international sport programs, including Erasmus + Sport and Council of Europe-funded projects. His areas of expertise are human development, psychoanalysis, clinical and sport psychology, safeguarding in sports and play and mental health.
He holds a PhD in Human Kinetics (Psychology and Motor Behaviour) and is the author of Bullying in Youth Sports Training: New perspectives and practical strategies (with Carlos Neto, António Rosado and Peter K. Smith. Routledge, 2020). He is a full member of several scientific societies, including the Portuguese Society of Clinical Psychology, the Portuguese Society of Sport Psychology and the Portuguese Society of Psychosomatic.
Miguel Nery works as an Assistant Professor at Europeia University in Lisbon and he’s also a Clinical Psychologist and Psychotherapist in a private practice.
