Hall of Fame
Louis Mateus served as the head men’s soccer coach at Benedictine from 1989-1997, helping engineer some of the most successful periods in program history.
Mateus guided Benedictine to the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1992 and 1993, the first two NCAA Division III appearances in program history. Both the 1992 and 1993 team were ranked regionally and nationally and teams regularly were ranked in the top-30 of the nation. Mateus also helped direct multiple conference titles including the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference title in 1996 and 1997 and coached the first team to ever have a winning record in the sport of men’s soccer.
While Mateus served as the head coach, Benedictine never posted a losing record. The women’s program was started by Mateus and in 1994 the national team from Spain came to Benedictine during the World Cup, which was hosted by the United States.
Mateus has coached three Hall of Famers from men’s soccer, the first three from the sport to be inducted.
Originally from Portugal, Mateus immigrated to the United States as a 16-year old. Mateus is married to a Benedictine alum, Jen, and one of his sons, Tanner, was a four-year placekicker for the football team who earned all-conference honors.
