06/21/26 07:23:00
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06/21 19:21 CDT 'Have faith': Vozinha's mom speaks out before Cape Verde pulls
off another World Cup tie vs. Uruguay
'Have faith': Vozinha's mom speaks out before Cape Verde pulls off another
World Cup tie vs. Uruguay
By TIM REYNOLDS
AP Sports Writer
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) --- On Father's Day, Vozinha's mother watched a tie.
There were 64,003 people in the stadium for the 2-2 draw between Cape Verde and
Uruguay on Sunday night, none of them with a better how-they-got-there story
than Ana Candida Evora --- the mother of Vozinha, Cape Verde's goalkeeper.
Evora arrived in Miami on Friday, reunited with her son over the weekend and
watched Sunday's game from a suite at Miami Stadium. Cape Verde's storybook
ride now has a chance of reaching the knockout stage, depending largely on how
its group stage finale against Saudi Arabia goes.
Cape Verde is one of the absolute feel-good stories of the World Cup, a tiny
island nation with two draws in its two matches to this point. Vozinha ---
whose name is Josimar Jos vora Dias --- had his mother in the stands Sunday;
she was unable to attend Cape Verde's opening draw against Spain because she
couldn't obtain a visa.
And even without a win --- in fact, her 40-year-old son didn't even make a save
Sunday --- her presence makes Cape Verde's story even better.
Goalkeepers don't always have to make a save to be effective. Vozinha's best
two plays of the match might not even show up on a stat sheet --- he was
perfectly positioned on a pair of Uruguay scoring chances in the closing
minutes, cutting down angles and forcing shooters to aim at tight spaces. Both
shots sailed high, and Vozinha exhaled deeply both times.
"I want to thank all the fans, everyone who helped in the process, for the
support you gave to the team, especially to Cabo Verde," Evora said Sunday in
remarks distributed by FIFA in a video message before the match. "We're all
rooting for Cabo Verde to play well, to shine on the pitch. The players need to
have faith and everything will go well.
"Keep your heads held high, go onto that pitch, push for a goal and you'll
perform beautifully, my boys. A kiss for you, be strong and brave. Blue Sharks!"
The team is commonly called Tubaroes Azuis in Portuguese, which translates to
Blue Sharks.
Evora carried a Cabo Verde flag into the stadium Sunday, her son's name and
jersey number on the back of her shirt, and she was ushered into a suite to
watch the contest. Vozinha heard roars from the fans --- even with a mostly
pro-Uruguay crowd --- whenever he was shown on the video screens during
warmups, and got perhaps the loudest ovation of any player when starters were
introduced.
Evora's visa issues --- primarily raising the money needed for one --- were
worked out after the U.S. State Department, FIFA, U.S. lawmakers and Cape
Verde's soccer federation evidently combined efforts and cleared a path for
Evora to come to Miami. She arrived Friday afternoon after more than 24 hours
of travel from Cape Verde and was immediately surrounded by FIFA officials and
volunteers as she made her way through the airport.
FIFA even hosted her briefly at the organization's tournament headquarters in
Florida over the weekend, officials said Sunday.
Vozinha had about 50,000 followers on Instagram as the World Cup was starting.
He was up to 15 million followers by game time Sunday after he grabbed the
world's sporting attention by leading Cape Verde to a scoreless draw against
Spain --- one of the pretournament favorites to win the title.
That means he gained about 30 followers every second from the end of the Spain
match to the start of the one against Uruguay.
He went viral after that match against Spain with tearful comments, wishing
that his late grandparents could have seen him play in the World Cup and that
his mother's visa issues had been resolved in time to be there. That sparked an
immediate effort to find ways for Evora to get to the U.S. for the tournament.
And the tie, combined with a story of a goalie and his mom, brought attention
onto Cape Verde's soccer team like never before.
"It's been intense," Cape Verde forward Garry Rodrigues said.
___
AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup
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