Touring Vitor Pereira's favourite pubs: A curry, a Carling and a table in front of the TV

New York Times

17-05-2025

The Swan, hidden near the leafy village of Tettenhall on the outskirts of Wolverhampton, has a new regular.
Vitor Pereira, head coach of Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers, has become a frequent visitor to the unassuming 'drinkers' pub' near his home in the city.
When The Athletic drops in late one recent Thursday afternoon, a table has been reserved in front of the place's big-screen TV.
Advertisement
Pereira had been in the previous evening and was expected back in a few hours. Saving his preferred spot is pretty much the only concession to the 56-year-old Portuguese's celebrity, according to licensee Stephen Garrett.
'He likes coming in and sitting on the 'back row',' Garrett tells The Athletic, pointing to a table with a bench seat against the wall and a couple of bar stools at the far side of the building.
'We sometimes reserve a space for him and he will just sit there with his beer and his notebook, watch the football and take notes.
'His assistant, Luis (Miguel), usually comes in with him. Nobody bothers him, really. I don't think many people realised who he was to start with.
'But even now, people will go over and say 'Hi' and congratulate him on what he's doing, but then they leave him alone.'
Since Pereira was appointed in December, he has gone from virtual unknown to a potential cult hero with Wolves fans, primarily thanks to the outstanding results that have lifted their club from a grim relegation battle under predecessor Gary O'Neil to comfortable top-flight safety with weeks to spare, but also due to him showing the common touch.
A journeyman coach who has led clubs in countries across the globe, Pereira has an engaging personality that's endeared him to the Wolves supporters, aided in no small part by his frequent visits to Wolverhampton's pubs, often captured by his fellow customers on social media.
The Swan has become his low-key local, but Pereira has completed a widespread tour of the area's drinking establishments, especially in the wake of Premier League wins.
A post shared by Men in Blazers (@meninblazers)
His calling points have included the Moon Under Water — the popular Wetherspoons pub opposite the Grand Theatre in the city centre (shown in the Instagram reel above) — the Hogshead, a large cestablishment in the middle of town known for its range of real ales and beers, and famously The Giffard Arms, a heavy-metal and rockers' hangout at the opposite end of the shopping area, complete with coffin-shaped tables, a dragon-themed throne as its centrepiece and a dark, moody atmosphere popular with the goth community.
In truth, Pereira is not a devotee of AC/DC or Iron Maiden, but was invited inside for a selfie while walking past following one of Wolves' victories.
He rocked up at the Giffard last night! pic.twitter.com/kFQHAgC1DZ
— Rob Dicken (@1970RobD) April 6, 2025
Nevertheless, his appearance in some of the city's more niche drinking holes has cemented his reputation as a man of the people.
'I think he's doing the rounds everywhere, isn't he?,' said Garrett. 'It's really nice. Not many managers do it.
'They generally stay where they are and don't mingle with 'the commoners', if you like. He was in here a few weeks back with his family playing darts, and he just keeps himself to himself.
Advertisement
'He first came in a good while back, months and months ago. Since then, he's been in fairly regularly, and he called in with his family and his children. On one occasion, some of his son's friends were here as well.'
It all began on Christmas Day, less than a week after Pereira and his staff arrived in the UK, swapping the heat and very different culture of the Saudi Pro League and their previous roles at Al Shabab in the capital Riyadh for a taste of the working-class West Midlands.
With the coaches' short on time to make plans for the festive season, the club pulled some strings and arranged a table for their Christmas dinner at The Fox at Shipley, a country pub 10 minutes outside Wolverhampton on the Shropshire border.
Since then, at least one meeting of senior Wolves staff and one media engagement have been held a mile further out of town at The Inn at Shipley.
And with Pereira's catchphrase — 'First the points, then the pints' — becoming adopted by fans on banners and in song, leading to more attention and more beer than he could handle in the city itself, country pubs have become an oasis of relative calm. Although…
'He did cause a bit of a stir,' says Leyla Cindil, assistant manager of The Crown, in the Staffordshire village of Codsall. 'Everyone came in once they found out he was here.
'I think it was just word of mouth. People were just talking, everyone talked to their friends and then he came in, and then everyone was chanting his name when he came in. It was pretty calm, really, but he kind of brought the carnage in.
'I didn't serve him personally, but I heard he was lovely. He was taking pictures with everyone. He had Carling and then just chilled with his friends. It was a pleasant atmosphere, very nice.'
Since leaving Porto — his hometown club and the place he cut his coaching teeth — 12 years ago, Pereira's career has taken him twice each to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Brazil, as well as to China, Greece and Germany.
Each time, he has travelled with his chosen group of assistants but without his wife and sons. His solution to possible isolation in Wolverhampton has been to absorb local culture, including, a couple of weeks ago, the 'desi pub'.
Advertisement
This British phenomenon, which involves families of South Asian heritage taking over traditional English pubs and combining their traditional offerings with Indian food, is particularly popular in the West Midlands.
The Angel Inn, in the unlikely setting of Ettingshall in the industrial region to the south east of Wolverhampton, is one such venue. And Pereira is the latest Wolves figure to look past the place's rather dour exterior to sample its increasingly popular food.
'We've had quite a few Wolves people here,' licensee Parm Shergill tells The Athletic. 'Nuno (Espirito Santo, the former Wolves and current Nottingham Forest head coach) used to come here, quite a few of the other players have been in, and (Wolves legend) Steve Bull is a regular.
'(Former Wolves manager) Mick McCarthy used to come here and Jeff Shi, the chairman, as well. It just looks like a little pub, but once one or two of them came here, they told the others and then they'll always say, 'So-and-so wants to come next', and this time it was Vitor.
'He was really nice, he loved the food and he said he's coming back with his family, so I'm expecting him back pretty soon again.
'Last time, he just came in with a few friends. I think he had a mixed grill or a curry, I can't remember which, and he drank Stella.
'He didn't really get mobbed, but we do get quite a lot of Wolves supporters in here and they obviously wanted to meet him. He was happy to speak to them and have photos taken.'
For Pereira, this victory tour of local pubs might have started by accident and the need for a short-notice Christmas venue, but it has become a key part of his off-field life and his growing status at Molineux.
'What do we do in Wolverhampton after a game?,' Pereira asked reporters during an interview at The Inn at Shipley recently.
GO DEEPER
Pereira interview: Pub trips, fulfilling a dream and being a stranger in his own home
'In the moments we are suffering, you feel we are suffering together. In the moments of celebration, you need to be with them. You need to be with the people, because you need to see the smiles. This is my energy.
'In Wolverhampton, where do you want me to go? I must go to a pub, because this is the culture and where people go.
'The people have a conversation after the game, during the week. Work, home, then we go to a pub, just for a beer or two beers and finish. This is our life.'