Benfica women's coach Filipa Patão has agreed to terms with Boston Legacy FC to become the National Women's Soccer League club's first head coach, a source with knowledge of the deal confirmed to ESPN.
Boston Legacy FC is set to begin playing as an NWSL expansion team next year.
The team declined to comment when reached by ESPN.
Portuguese outlet A Bola, which first reported the news, reported that Benfica will be compensated by Boston since Patão is under contract through 2027.
The 36-year-old Patão is a Portugal native who has managed Benfica's senior team since 2020, guiding the team to five consecutive league titles.
Benfica became the first Portuguese club to reach the UEFA Women's Champions League quarterfinals in the 2023-24 edition of the tournament.
A second source described Patão as a "high energy, passionate" coach who would have been among the most sought out for currently available coaches.
Patão was one of six nominees last year for the Ballon d'Or's first Women's Coach of the Year award. United States head coach Emma Hayes won the award.
Prior to taking over the senior team, Patão was involved with Benfica's training schools. She also played professionally and was capped by the Portugal national team.
Boston Legacy's general manager is Domènec Guasch, who joined the club in December from his role as head of management for women's football at FC Barcelona.
Boston will join the NWSL next year alongside another expansion team in Denver, bringing the league to 16 teams.
The club has gotten off to a rocky start away from the field since being granted an expansion franchise in 2023. It originally rolled out the name "BOS Nation FC" in October and introduced the branding with a campaign titled, "Too Many Balls," which many fans found insensitive.
The club soon apologized and eventually changed its name earlier this year to Boston Legacy FC.
Earlier this week, the club confirmed that construction delays at White Stadium will force the club to play its first season at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Boston Legacy is renovating White Stadium as part of a controversial public-private partnership with Boston Public Schools.
There is an ongoing lawsuit from locals to stop the project, although a judge recently dismissed most of their legal claims.
The completion of White Stadium as a permanent home stadium was a contingency of Boston being granted an NWSL expansion team, sources previously confirmed to ESPN.
The ownership group is led by controlling manager Jennifer Epstein, an entrepreneur whose family was a longtime stakeholder in the NBA's Boston Celtics.