Portimonense was a regular presence in the
Portuguese first division, even finishing fifth in
1984–85 – highlights included 0–0 home draws against
Benfica and
Sporting CP – which led to participation in the
UEFA Cup in the
1985–86 season. The team were eliminated in the first round of that competition by
FK Partizan of Yugoslavia. In the 1990s and 2000s, however, the club primarily played in the
Segunda Liga, while also having a brief spell in the
third level. In
2009–10, Portimonense started with Angolan
Lito Vidigal at the helm, but when he left for
União de Leiria, former Sporting midfielder
Litos took charge, and led the team to a final second place, behind
S.C. Beira-Mar, thus returning it to the top flight after exactly 20 years of absence; substitute
Wilson Eduardo scored the only goal away to
U.D. Oliveirense to guarantee the promotion. Midway through the
2010–11 campaign, Litos was fired due to bad results, as Portimonense eventually ranked second from bottom and was relegated back. The team met the same fate in
the following season, even managing to rank in a worse position; however, after
Varzim S.C. was not allowed to promote from division three due to financial irregularities, Portimonense was reinstated. Portimonense won the
2016–17 LigaPro to return to the top flight after six years; the campaign was managed by
Vítor Oliveira, who had begun his coaching career with the club three decades earlier and had won promotion for the fifth consecutive time. The team went down on the last day of the
2019–20 season, as competitors
C.D. Tondela and
Vitória de Setúbal also won their games, however, Portimonense remained in the division due to issues off the pitch at both
Vitória de Setúbal and
C.D. Aves meaning these two were relegated and the Algarve side would stay up. ==Players==