Vozinha wants – After becoming Cape Verde’s oldest player in a World Cup debut match, goalkeeper Vozinha spoke about crying on the night because his grandparents—now gone—and his mother could not be there. He said visa costs meant she couldn’t travel in time, as Cape Verde pr
When Cape Verde’s goalkeeper Vozinha walked into his nation’s debut World Cup match, he brought more than experience. He carried grief, too—fresh enough to catch in the throat.
The 40-year-old. 12 days old. became the oldest player to appear in a nation’s debut World Cup match after a goalless draw against Spain. It wasn’t just the performance that spread online. Vozinha’s show between the posts has turned him into a cult hero. with millions of new followers drawn to him on social media.
After the match, he explained why the moment hit him so hard. “I cried because I grew up with my grandparents,” he said. “Unfortunately, they were not here. They died a few years before. They were everything to me, everything in my life.”
Then came the part that landed closer to the present. “And also because of my mum,” Vozinha added. “She didn’t manage to be here because of the visa. Because of the money you have to pay for the visa, we didn’t manage it in time. I would like her to be here.”
Those words sit alongside the path that got him here. Vozinha has earned 91 caps for Cape Verde and currently plays club football for Chaves in Portugal’s second tier. His career has included spells in Slovakia. Angola. Moldova and Cyprus—journeys that. until now. had taken him far from family. He said he only began playing professional football when he was 25. in 2012. calling it “too late for a person like me.”.
He also described the tug-of-war that came with commitment. “I thought about leaving the national team,” he said, “but then I continued because of this dream.”
Cape Verde’s next steps are already locked in. The team will face Uruguay on 21 June, followed by Saudi Arabia on 27 June in Group H.
The sequence of facts around Vozinha makes the stakes feel personal: a milestone debut at age 40. a goalless draw that turned him into a global talking point. and a goalkeeper’s private longing for the people who can’t make the journey—grandparents gone. a mother blocked by a visa he said was too costly to arrange in time. By the time Cape Verde returns to the pitch, the storyline won’t just be about saves. It will be about who gets to be in the stands when the dream finally arrives.
Additional reporting on the ground came from the BBC’s Michel Mvondo in Sao Vicente.
World Cup Cape Verde Uruguay Saudi Arabia Group H Vozinha goalkeeper Chaves visa Spain
Visa costs are crazy, like how is his mom supposed to just magically get there?
Wait so he’s 40 AND 12 days old? Did I read that right or is the article glitching? Either way crying for family makes sense.
This is why I don’t trust FIFA though, the whole visa thing is on purpose right? Like rich people can go watch but normal moms can’t, seems convenient. Also goalkeepers are always weirdly emotional for the camera.
Good for him, but can someone explain why it says he started pro at 25 in 2012, like… that math doesn’t add up? Still, cult hero on social media sounds about right, people love a sad story after a draw.