Goalkeeper Vozinha, 40, held Spain to a 0-0 draw between the teams this Monday (15), in the first round of Group H of the 2026 World Cup.
His five crucial saves, most in the first half, shattered expectations of an easy victory for favorite Spain in Cape Verde’s World Cup debut.
In addition to his excellent performance, his curious nickname generated sympathy from Portuguese-speaking fans, as well as memes and puns.
During the game, the number of followers on his Instagram account grew from 50 thousand followers to more than 1 million until the last update of this text.
The goalkeeper’s real name is Josimar Dias, a tribute from his father to the former right-back of Botafogo and the Brazilian team in the 1986 World Cup.
Rejected by the registry office from giving the name Valdano, an Argentine idol from Real Madrid, Vozinha’s father decided to pay homage to the Brazilian player. When he saw the child born on June 3, 1986, he had no doubts.
Josimar grew up and took a liking to scoring goals. He played on the street until he reached the professional fields.
“No one in Cape Verde knew me as Josimar. I didn’t like it at first, I went crazy. But, when I arrived in Angola, there was another goalkeeper called Josimar. So I said: ‘I’m not going to put Josimar II on my shirt’. And if everyone knew me as Vozinha in Cape Verde, that’s what would stay”, said the goalkeeper in an interview with FIFA.
The nickname Vozinha, like others, only caught on precisely because Josimar didn’t like it.
“It’s because of my grandparents. I never lived with my parents. When I was born, my father was in the military. And my mother always had to work for something. So I always grew up with my grandparents”, he said.
“In my region the boys were much older. And I always played in the street, getting hit a lot. Because I also played very well with my feet, I was competitive and rebellious, I didn’t like losing. I took a lot of beatings, and whenever I couldn’t get back, I would go home angry, with a frown, and they would make fun of me, saying I was going to complain to my grandparents.”
For 12 years in the country’s national team, Vozinha plays for Chaves, from the Portuguese Second Division and is now one of Cape Verde’s leaders.
A debutant in the World Cup, Cape Verde returns to the field, certainly with Vozinha in goal, against Uruguay, on Sunday (21), in Group H, which, in addition to Spain, also includes Saudi Arabia.
