The award has been presented since the 2003–04 season and the recipient is based on individual scores assigned by the three national sports dailies, A Bola, Record, and O Jogo.
The first winner of the award was Beira-Mar midfielder Juninho Petrolina in September 2003.
Pedro Barbosa became the first Portuguese to win the award in November 2003.
The "Big Three" (Benfica, Porto and Sporting CP) have had the most winners.
Prior to the 2012–13 Primeira Liga season, the SJPF announced that the SJPF Primeira Liga Player of the Month award would be awarded to a player on a bimonthly status with one player receiving an award for two months of football that have been played.