Who is Vozinha, Cape Verde’s viral goalkeeper at the World Cup?

SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkCape Verde's goalkeeper, Vozinha, celebrates with his national flag at the end of the 2026 World Cup Group H football match between Spain and Cape Verde at Atlanta Stadium in Atlanta on June 15, 2026 [AFP]By Al Jazeera StaffPublished On 16 Jun 202616 Jun 2026Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha broke down in tears at the end of the 0-0 draw with Spain after the 40-year-old was mobbed by his teammates following a stunning display as he denied the European champions victory in their World Cup opener.Cape Verde were pinned back in their own half for much of Monday’s game, but whenever Spain broke through their dogged rearguard, Vozinha came to the rescue.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4World Cup racism monitor urges FIFA to remove VAR official over gesturelist 2 of 4Preview: France kicks off World Cup campaign with tricky match vs Senegallist 3 of 4Tunisia sack boss Sabri Lamouchi after World Cup thrashing by Swedenlist 4 of 4Spain held to shock draw by Cape Verde in their World Cup openerend of listHis heroics earned him the player of the match, pulling off a string of saves at the end of the first half to deny Ferran Torres, Pedri and Aymeric Laporte.Here’s everything we know about the Cape Verde goalkeeper:Cape Verde’s goalkeeper, Vozinha, celebrates at the end of the 2026 World Cup Group H match between Spain and Cape Verde at Atlanta Stadium on June 15, 2026 [AFP]Where does Vozinha play?Vozinha goalkeeps for Chaves in Portugal’s second-tier football league.The World Cup is by far the biggest stage he has reached, but Vozinha began his club career at home with Batuque FC, before transferring to CS Mindelense.The veteran player’s experience comes from the myriad clubs he has represented – from Progresso in Angola to Zimbru Chisinau in Moldova, Gil Vicente in Portugal, AEL Limassol in Cyprus and AS Trencin in Slovakia, before arriving at Chaves.Is Vozinha his real name?No, Vozinha is a moniker for Josimar Jose Evora Dias. It came from his grandparents, whom he spent most of his time with as his father was in the military and his mother was working. The name checks out, since it means “little granny” in Portuguese.From his hometown of Sao Vicente in Cape Verde, Vozinha has been his jersey name throughout the nomadic club pilgrimage across Africa and Europe.“When I arrived in Angola, there was another goalkeeper named Josimar, and I said, ‘I am not going to put Josimar II on the shirt’. If everyone knew me as Vozinha in Cape Verde, that’s what I would be,” he told FIFA in an interview earlier this year.What did Vozinha say after the match?The Cape Verde keeper was reduced to tears by his heroics and fairytale World Cup debut.“Very proud… It is an honour for me to represent my country,” Vozinha told reporters of his island nation, the third smallest nation to qualify for a World Cup.“I cried because I grew up with my grandparents and, unfortunately, they were not here; they died a few years before, and they did everything for me and my life,” he added.“Also, my mum, she didn’t manage to be here because of the visa. The money for the visa, we didn’t manage on time, and I would like her to be here.”Is Vozinha world-famous now?Yes, on all counts.The goalkeeper’s Instagram following jumped from a modest 500,000 to nearly 5 million within a few hours of full-time in the Spain match.His quiet brilliance was spotlighted on the world’s biggest stage for all to see.French football star Paul Pogba took to social media after the match in praise of Vozinha.“The Cape Verde goalkeeper is really something, waaaaw,” he wrote.