- The Uruguayan coach was a goalkeeper with great experience at club and national team level during his playing days.
- He led Uruguay to third place at the 2004™ CONMEBOL Copa America in Peru.
With good recent campaigns at CONMEBOL Copa América™, Peru invests in the experience of coach Jorge Fossati to take the next step and seek its third continental title in history. Not only does the new team leader have an extensive resume with national teams, but he also knows what it's like to play in the world's oldest national team tournament.
Jorge Daniel Fossati Lurachi was born in Tacuarembó, Uruguay, on November 22, 1952 and had a career of almost two decades as a goalkeeper, standing out as a player at Rampla Juniors. He had special spells at Peñarol, Olimpia (Paraguay) and Rosario Central (Argentina), where he won seven titles in total. He also played for Independiente (Argentina), Millonarios (Colombia), Green Cross-Temuco (Chile), Avaí and Coritiba (both in Brazil).
The unique insight provided by his position on the pitch encouraged Fossati to delve deeper into match analysis and consequently pursue a career as a football coach. After his time at River Plate Montevideo, he became coach of Peñarol, where he won the Uruguayan title in 1996. He then had two spells at Danubio and one at Colón (Argentina) before taking charge of LDU in Quito. In Ecuador, he won the national league in 2003 and then his first big opportunity came to him with a national team: Uruguay.
At the national team, the coach had the mission of leading La Celeste during the 2004™ CONMEBOL Copa América tournament and improving the team's performance in the World Cup Qualifiers. He led the country to its first continental podium since the 1995 edition, finishing in third place, and came very close to qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, but his Uruguay were beaten on penalties by Australia in the intercontinental playoff.
Fossati coached the Qatari national team twice, as well as making history in the Arab country at club level with Al-Sadd (2007 and 2011-12), where he won the domestic league and, more importantly, the Asian Champions League. He also triumphed at the continental level in his return to the Ecudorian League, winning the CONMEBOL Sudamericana and the 2009 Recopa, as well as leading Internacional to the CONMEBOL Libertadores quarterfinals the following year.
Outside the country, the Uruguayan successfully coached Cerro Porteño (Paraguay), winner of the Apertura Tournament in 2012, and led Universitario de Lima to the Peruvian league title in 2023. The achievement led the local federation to call him to lead Peru's senior team, which he has been doing since the beginning of this year. Now, he is looking forward to his first major tournament with the Bicolor in the United States during this CONMEBOL Copa América 2024™.
The sum of Jorge Fossati's career and the experience of athletes such as Paolo Guerrero renews the hopes of all Peruvians for a memorable participation during this 48th edition of CONMEBOL Copa América™.
