Pedro Miguel Cardoso Monteiro, known throughout his career simply as Pelé, won 11 caps for Cape Verde as a centre-back between 2006 and 2009. None of that history made headlines when he was playing. All of it suddenly matters now, after Cape Verde’s stunning 0-0 draw with Spain in their World Cup debut turned the small island nation into one of the stories of the tournament.
Speaking after the result, Pelé reflected on what it means for a country that has produced precious little international football history until now.
At the centre of it all was goalkeeper Vozinha, whose performance against one of the tournament favourites instantly made him a household name. Pelé wasn’t surprised by the talent, even if the stage was new. “I heard of Vozinha when I was still playing for Cabo Verde and some of the players obviously spoke about him so I heard little bits about him,” he said. “As a defender myself, I always expected my goalkeeper to be there if I got beat… and Vozinha will have that trust now more than ever for what he did against Spain.”
Vozinha is 40 years old, a detail that has added extra weight to the story given how rare it is for a goalkeeper that age to deliver a career-defining performance on the biggest stage in football. Pelé doesn’t see age as a barrier to whatever comes next. “We always see some players get big moves after a World Cup but of course you are going to look at Vozinha and his age and think maybe it’s a little bit late for him? But I don’t think so,” he said. “It’s never too late for anything. Age is just a number. If you can play like he did against Spain, that’s not luck. He can do a job somewhere. I’m sure a few clubs are taking a look at him now.”
It isn’t just Vozinha who stands to benefit from the exposure. Cape Verde’s run to a first World Cup has been built on a squad mostly playing in Europe and Africa rather than at home, and Pelé expects the Spain result to change how far that talent travels. “This World Cup, after a game like Spain, will put the country in everybody’s eyes,” he said. “A lot of people now will know about the talent Cabo Verde have, who might play for a smaller team now but have a chance now to move on and better their careers next season.”
Among the squad’s most unlikely stories is Roberto Lopes, the Dublin-born Shamrock Rovers defender who was first contacted about playing for Cape Verde via a LinkedIn message from former coach Rui Aguas, a message he initially dismissed before responding months later. Pelé, who had finished playing by the time Lopes joined up with the national team, has followed his progress from a distance, and sees the story resonating well beyond Cape Verde itself. “I think that’s amazing, and for my son who was born in England, he now feels like it could happen for him too one day,” Pelé said. He added that supporters far from the islands are increasingly adopting Cape Verde as a second team: “A small team like Cabo Verde give people so much hope. That travels far and far away.”
That pulling power extends to players who might once have looked elsewhere entirely. Asked whether more dual-eligible players might now choose Cape Verde over Portugal, having heard Nani speak of his pride in his Cape Verdean roots before the tournament, Pelé drew on his own experience of facing that exact decision. “I remember myself at my time when I was first approached by Cabo Verde, in my head I was still thinking I can play for Portugal,” he said. “But I never got the call and I decided to go back to Cabo Verde and accept their offer. Nowadays I think it will be a lot easier for a player to look at Cabo Verde and see it as a chance to be an international footballer and play at the biggest tournaments.”
Pelé was careful not to get carried away with the scale of the achievement so far, with the group stage still to navigate. But he made no secret of his hopes for a dream draw should Cape Verde progress. “We would love to make the final and see Cabo Verde play Portugal!” he said. “If we do, we’ve got Vozinha, and he can stop anyone. He could stop Cristiano Ronaldo, even.”
For now, the priority is simpler: turning a famous draw into a platform. “We can compete with anybody in Africa but we showed against Spain we can compete with anyone around the world too,” Pelé said. “I’m already very happy with where the country is right now and the progression from all these years to where we are today.”
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