Francisco Trincão was born on 29 December 1999 in Viana do Castelo, in the Minho region of northern Portugal. He came through the youth system of Braga and made his senior debut for the club in 2018, going on to produce a breakout 2019-20 Liga NOS season that earned him a transfer to Barcelona for around €31 million in summer 2020.
His Barcelona experience was complicated by the club's financial difficulties and the departure of Lionel Messi, and he found playing time difficult to come by. In summer 2021 he was loaned to Wolverhampton Wanderers, where he spent a year developing in the Premier League. Returning to Barcelona, he was subsequently loaned to Sporting CP for the 2022-23 season, where he flourished under Rúben Amorim's system.
His performances at Sporting CP — particularly the 2022-23 Liga Portugal season — convinced both the club and Barcelona that a permanent arrangement made sense, and in summer 2023 Sporting CP completed a permanent signing for around €10 million. At Sporting he has continued to be a key creative attacker, operating as a right-sided wide forward or attacking midfielder, contributing goals and assists across Liga Portugal and European competition through the 2024-25 season.
For Portugal he debuted in 2020 under Fernando Santos and has been a senior squad option through Euro 2020 and beyond, continuing into Roberto Martínez's tenure. He has featured in the 2024 UEFA European Championship squad and the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign as one of the attacking depth options behind the core starting forwards.
Standing 1.80 m, Trincão is a right-footed wide attacker who operates primarily on the right but can cut inside effectively. His combination of close control, directness and technical ability draw comparisons to a younger Nani in terms of wide-forward profile and Portuguese flair, though with a more modern tendency toward pressing and inside movement associated with the Rúben Amorim coaching philosophy.