Before joining Real Madrid, Mourinho worked at Benfica, a club in Portugal. During his time there, he did not win any titles and failed to qualify the team for the Champions League. The team finished third in the Portuguese league.

Mourinho's return to Real Madrid is similar to his previous experience at Benfica. He was a key figure in the election campaign of Florentino Perez, the club's president, in recent weeks. Perez has just been elected as the new president of Real Madrid, and Mourinho appeared in a campaign video that was reportedly created using artificial intelligence.

Mourinho's second spell at Benfica ended with a record of 45 games, 27 wins, 10 draws, and 8 losses.