Tulio was born in Palmeira d'Oeste, Brazil on April 24, 1981. He moved to Japan at age 15 to complete his high school studies. After graduating from Shibuya Makuhari High School, he joined J1 League club Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 2001. In opening game against Kashima Antlers in 2001 season on March 11, he debuted as substitute defender in the 10th minutes instead Tony Popovic who was injured, and Tulio scored a goal in the 16th minutes. After the debut, he played many matches as center back in 2 seasons. However Hiroshima was relegated to J2 League end of 2002 season. In 2003, he moved to J2 League club Mito HollyHock. In October 2003, Tulio obtained his Japanese citizenship. Although he played as center back, he scored 10 goals in 2003 season. In 2004, he moved to J1 club Urawa Reds. Urawa won the champions in 2006 and he was selected MVP award. In 2007, Urawa won their first Asian champions in 2007 AFC Champions League. He played 168 matches and score 37 goals for the club in 6 seasons and was selected Best Eleven every season. In 2010, he moved to Nagoya Grampus. In his first season in Nagoya, Nagoya won the champions in 2010 J1 League first time in the club history. Nagoya also won the 2nd place in the 2011 season. He played 188 matches and scored 36 goals for the club. He was also selected Best Eleven for 3 years in a row (2010-2012). In 2017, he moved to J2 club Kyoto Sanga FC and played in 3 seasons. He retired end of 2019 season.