Luan (footballer, born 1993)

Luan Guilherme de Jesus Vieira, born 27 March 1993, generally known simply as Luan, is a Brazilian footballer from São José do Rio Preto, in the state of São Paulo. An attacking midfielder and forward, he became most closely associated with Grêmio during the club’s successful mid-2010s period. His route to Porto Alegre included youth football with Tanabi and América-SP before he joined Grêmio’s academy in 2013.

Luan made his senior Grêmio debut in 2014 and quickly established himself as a creative, mobile attacker rather than a conventional centre-forward. He was part of the side that won the 2016 Copa do Brasil, Grêmio’s first major national cup success in fifteen years. In 2017 he played a central role in the club’s Copa Libertadores campaign. Grêmio defeated Lanús of Argentina 3–1 on aggregate in the final, and Luan was named the competition’s best player. That Libertadores title gave Grêmio a place at the FIFA Club World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, where the team finished as runner-up after losing the final to Real Madrid.

At international youth level, Luan represented Brazil at the 2016 Olympic football tournament in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil won its first Olympic gold medal in men’s football, beating Germany on penalties after a 1–1 final draw at the Maracanã. Luan appeared throughout the tournament and scored in Brazil’s group-stage 4–0 victory over Denmark. His Olympic involvement came amid the most productive period of his Grêmio career.

In December 2019, Corinthians announced Luan’s signing from Grêmio on a contract running to the end of 2023. The move brought high expectations because of his Libertadores reputation, but he did not reproduce his Grêmio influence consistently at Corinthians. He nevertheless belonged to the Corinthians squad that reached the 2022 Copa do Brasil final, which Flamengo won on penalties. During his Corinthians spell he also had loan periods, including at Santos in 2022 and Grêmio in 2023.

In 2024, after his Corinthians contract ended, Luan joined Vitória. His career has therefore included prominent spells at two of Brazil’s most historically successful clubs, a major continental honour, an Olympic gold medal, and a Club World Cup final. The individual distinction as the 2017 Copa Libertadores player of the tournament remains the clearest marker of his peak: it reflected his contribution to a Grêmio team that combined domestic cup success with South America’s leading club trophy during that celebrated 2017 campaign.