Cape Verde’s remarkable FIFA World Cup debut continued on Sunday as the tournament newcomers battled back to earn a 2-2 draw against two-time champions Uruguay, strengthening their hopes of reaching the knockout stage.
Just days after stunning Spain with a scoreless draw, the tiny island nation produced another memorable performance, recovering from a halftime deficit through Helio Varela’s second-half equalizer to remain unbeaten after two group matches.
Kevin Pina had earlier written his name into Cape Verdean football history by scoring the country’s first-ever World Cup goal, curling a superb free kick beyond veteran goalkeeper Fernando Muslera in the 21st minute.
“This is something we owe to other smaller national teams,” Cape Verde head coach Pedro Leitão Brito said through an interpreter.
“Teams that struggled to qualify for a world tournament. We’re also here to show that a country may be small, may struggle financially, but if they are resilient, if they can endure struggle, they can also stand shoulder to shoulder with other major teams and with players who are on another level.”
Located off Africa’s west coast, Cape Verde has a population of roughly half a million people, making it one of the smallest nations ever to qualify for a FIFA World Cup.
Despite the majority of supporters inside Miami Stadium backing Uruguay, Cape Verde never appeared overwhelmed.
“Once you’re on the pitch, a lot of things become equal,” Leitão Brito said.
Cape Verde’s supporters were still celebrating last week’s shock draw with Spain when Pina split Uruguay’s defensive wall with a brilliantly struck free kick to hand his side a deserved lead.
Uruguay responded before halftime as Maxi Araújo and Agustín Canobbio scored in quick succession to give Marcelo Bielsa’s side a 2-1 advantage heading into the interval.
Cape Verde refused to fade.
Shortly after entering the match in the second half, substitute Helio Varela capitalized on a misplaced pass from Mathías Olivera, raced onto the loose ball and calmly finished into an empty net with Muslera stranded well off his line to level the score and register his first international goal.
The match also provided another memorable chapter for Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha, whose heroics against Spain established the 40-year-old as one of the tournament’s breakout stars.
Unlike the opening match, Vozinha’s mother was in attendance after previously being unable to secure a visa. Sunday’s contest also marked the first World Cup match to feature two starting goalkeepers aged 40 or older, with Muslera having celebrated his 40th birthday on June 16.
Following the final whistle, Vozinha acknowledged the supporters before joining teammates in celebrating with the Cape Verdean fans, who danced and sang as they left the stadium after another historic result.
“You show up, you believe, and we work very hard as a team,” defender Stopira said.
“I think all the world can see we play, we play very good, and we also have quality in the team. So now it’s on to the next game, and to try to reach the next one.”
With two impressive results against Spain and Uruguay, Cape Verde now heads into its final group match with a genuine opportunity to complete one of the greatest underdog stories in World Cup history by advancing to the knockout stage.