@mashcruze: Vozinha is the nickname of Josimar José Évora Dias, a Cape Verdean goalkeeper who became one of the breakout stars of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He plays for the Cape Verde national team and has had a club career spanning Cape Verde, Angola, Moldova, Portugal, Cyprus, and Slovakia. He’s a full international since 2012 and is the second highest caps earner in Cape Verde’s national team history. His nickname actually has roots in a rough childhood, not his age. Born in Mindelo, on Cape Verde’s São Vicente island, he was raised by his grandparents while his parents worked, and grew up playing street football with older kids in his neighborhood. When he lost his temper after being unable to hold his own against bigger boys, they started teasing him, saying he’d go home to complain to his grandparents, and the name stuck for the rest of his career. His first name, Josimar, also has a story: he was named in honor of Josimar, a Brazilian right back who played in the 1986 World Cup, since his family were fans of the Brazilian side. His World Cup run made him a global name almost overnight. At 40 years old, he became the oldest player to ever feature in a nation’s first World Cup match, and kept clean sheets against both Spain and Saudi Arabia before leading Cape Verde into the knockout stage. Before the Spain match he had around 50,000 Instagram followers; within a day of that game, he’d surpassed seven million, a viral underdog story built on decades of grinding through smaller leagues before the world took notice. #vozinha #fifa #worldcup2026

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Monday 06 July 2026 19:16:34 GMT