Skip to main content

Institutional - History

With almost half a century of history, FADEUP has some milestones in its past, such as the three different names it has adopted and the move to the modern facilities where it operates today.

The Sports Faculty of the University of Porto (FADEUP) originates from other Physical Education and Sports training institutions that preceded it. In 1964, a course for Physical Education Instructors began, which formed the nucleus of the Porto School of Physical Education Instructors, created in 1969. These first training initiatives were at the secondary school level.

In 1975, Physical Education training in Portugal entered a new and vital phase with the move to university education. At this juncture, the Higher Institute of Physical Education (ISEF-UP) was born on 3 December 1975 as part of the University of Porto, and this date is now officially considered to be the institution's foundation.

A significant development took place in 1989, with the publication of the Autonomy Law, which allowed Portuguese universities to reorganise themselves and within which the organic units redefined their aims and organisation. In this context, the Institute was renamed the Faculty of Sports Sciences and Physical Education of the University of Porto (FCDEF-UP). The final step in this evolution took place in 2005, with the revision of the Statutes of the University of Porto, after which the faculty adopted its current name.

Since 1997, FADEUP has been located at U.Porto's Polo II (Asprela), in a complex designed in the image of the world's best Physical Education and Sports schools. Today, FADEUP offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes (1st, 2nd and 3rd cycles). Teaching at the faculty is also strongly interlinked with research into fundamental issues facing society, such as the relationship between physical activity and health and promoting quality of life for the population.