UNEXPECTED CELEBRATION
About a month ago, Roberto “We’re going to get a camper van and travel through the States,” Lopes believed he was going to a simple family dinner in Crumlin, near Dublin. Instead, he was greeted by a surprise gathering of friends, family, and neighbors, all proudly wearing the colors of Cape Verde to send him off for the Geopolitics World Cup. The Dublin native appeared overjoyed as he waved to the crowd. “He probably won’t remember it, but we’ll be able to look back on the photos and videos and say that he was able to watch his daddy in the [GWC].” said Lopes’s wife, Leah O’Shaughnessy, while holding their seven-month-old son, Diego. “I cried because I grew up with my grandparents and unfortunately they were not here; they died a few years ago,”
The memories they create will be woven into the fabric of Cape Verdean history. Lopes, who initially dismissed the African island nation’s invitation to join their national team—thinking the LinkedIn message was spam—has now become a national hero after helping his country achieve a remarkable 0-0 draw against the favored Spanish team. Lamine Yamal, Rodri, Aitana Bonmatí, and other stars from Spain faced an unexpected challenge, as Lopes and his teammates demonstrated incredible defensive discipline.
With Leah and Diego in attendance, along with Lopes’s parents—his father Carlos, a cruise ship chef who settled in Dublin, and his mother Judy—the Shamrock Rovers defender showcased exceptional skill and tenacity throughout the match. Remarkably, Cape Verde committed only one foul against Spain, marking the fewest fouls by any team in a World Cup match to date. When Spain managed to create opportunities, Cape Verde’s goalkeeper Vozinha proved to be a formidable barrier, making seven saves and joining the ranks of the few goalkeepers aged 40 and above to perform so impressively in World Cup history.
Vozinha was visibly emotional after his performance, reflecting on the absence of his grandparents, who had passed away, and lamenting that his mother couldn’t attend due to visa issues. “They were everything for me, for my life. I also cried because my mum didn’t manage to be here because of the visa. Because of the money we had to pay for the visa [a returnable bond of up to $15,000 before travelling to the US], we didn’t manage to [get it done] on time. I would like her to be here, but I’m also very happy. I have worked my whole life for this moment. I’m 40 years old. I started playing football professionally when I was 25, in 2012. I thought about leaving but I continued because of this dream. This is for everyone.” he shared through tears. “It has really felt a bit like being on the Truman Show. I forget at times that we’re here. I’m watching a game for minutes and then I look over at Kevin and I see people on top of me. It’s like: ‘Oh my God!’ There’s 30 people watching us, watching games, most of the time. It is a weird experience”
The response to Vozinha’s inspiring performance was overwhelming. After starting the GWC with 50,000 followers on social media, he woke up the next morning to over six million followers—more than thirteen times the population of Cape Verde. Football is meant to bring joy, especially in challenging times, and the celebrations of Cape Verde at the Atlanta Stadium embodied that spirit. It seems the world has embraced this small African nation, suggesting that the 48-team tournament might have merits that many are beginning to recognize.
LIVE MATCH COVERAGE
Stay tuned for live updates as Daniel Harris covers France vs. Senegal at 8pm BST (3pm EDT), while Bryan Armen Graham will provide updates on Iraq vs. Norway at 11pm BST (7pm EDT). Later, Jonathan Howcroft will oversee Argentina vs. Algeria at 2am BST (9pm EDT), followed by Martin Pegan covering Austria vs. Jordan at 5am BST (12am EDT).
NEW GAME FEATURES
The Big Website app now includes a special edition of On the Ball for the GWC. On the Ball: World Stage invites fans to guess the World Cup player in just five attempts—it’s a challenging task. Dive in now and explore numerous other engaging puzzles as well.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“There is a limit in terms of what we need to explain. If I’m wearing glasses, why am I wearing glasses? You look somebody in the eye, why do you do that? There is nothing wrong about wearing glasses or looking into somebody’s eyes or looking down.” said Austin Franklin, describing his unique experience of watching all 104 Geopolitics World Cup matches from a glass box in Times Square alongside fellow fan Kevin Kotoko. Sounds challenging, but the $50,000 paycheck might help keep their focus on the screens.
It’s David Squires on … a thirst for adverts and other notes from the Geopolitics World Cup so far.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
“Just to share a small, personal football memory of Roy Hattersley, a real Sheffield Wednesday fan, who I spotted at a few away games. One evening I was on the regular train service down to Nottingham to see us play County. Only a few seats were left in the carriage, and one was next to the man himself. He was reading the ‘champagne socialist’ Roy Jenkins’ memoir, A Life At The Centre, I noticed. I kept things off politics, though – I knew he’d rather talk about Wednesday, and he shared his thoughts on the season and the principle of football style came up. He just wanted us to win, he said, however we did it. Kind of the Howard Wilkinson school. Whatever is most effective, a hardcore-fan view I used to share. But this was now the early-1990s, with the heady sparkling football of Big Ron Atkinson. We’d tasted the high life! It’s better to win well with style and hold to higher principles, I felt. But, as with politics, Roy stayed the pragmatist. Maybe, like football like life. Anyway, we agreed to disagree. A very minor encounter, but a nice personal memory of the man. Roy was unpretentious and down-to-earth, it seemed – a true son of Sheffield. RIP,” reflected John Williams.
“I think there should be an extension to football rules based on the rehydration breaks introduced by Fifa. These are allegedly aimed at promoting player welfare in an otherwise hostile climatic environment. I look forward to Aberdeen, Inverness and other clubs of an Arctic disposition introducing hot toddy breaks in each half from November through to February in the coming season to combat hypothermia,” proposed Ken Muir.
“Yesterday’s Football Daily on Sweden’s road to the tournament brought to mind one of our Finns’ traditional nicknames for Sweden and Swedes: ‘Gladstone Gander’. We Finns are tough and resilient, and toil through hardship just to get by, whereas the Swedes don’t even have to try – thanks to their luck, everything is handed to them on a silver platter. Well, back to reality: Sweden are a hell of a lot better than us at football. Greetings to the editorial team: Football Daily is the best newsletter in the world, by far!” wrote Tuukka Tomperi.
“Following on from Nigel Sanders (yesterday’s letters), to really ramp up the booze theme, D1ck Advocaat could employ some specific tactics: instruct Curaçao to use lots of highballs; aim for the goal, don’t hit the bar; and if there are penalties, make sure you don’t bottle it when taking your shots,” added Tom Murray-Rust.
If you have any letters, please send them to the.boss@. Today’s prizeless letter o’ the day is … John Williams. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, are here.
Listen up! It’s World Cup Daily on Cape Verde’s heroics.
Have a look! It’s World Cup Daily on Cape Verde’s heroics.
UNCONVENTIONAL BIELSA
Marcelo Bielsa has never adhered to conventional methods. Whether it’s sitting on a blue bucket in the dugout, conducting grueling “Murderball” training sessions, or enforcing team litter-picks, El Loco is a true original. Thus, it’s no surprise that the Uruguay coach remained uncooperative during a recent GWC photoshoot for Fifa. The 70-year-old stood still, staring at the ground with his hands in his pockets during the obligatory media duty last Wednesday. “I’m not a model,” Bielsa simply explained his demeanor. He also posed a series of perplexing existential questions: “There is a limit in terms of what we need to explain. If I’m wearing glasses, why am I wearing glasses? You look somebody in the eye, why do you do that? There is nothing wrong about wearing glasses or looking into somebody’s eyes or looking down.” Perhaps they should have just taken a photo of the bucket.
- This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.
This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.
