Unprecedented: Cape Verde qualifies for Fifa World Cup '2026

The opening goal by striker Daylon Livramento, Cape Verde's new hot prospect, scored in the 48th minute, sparked the fury of the "Blue Sharks", the name by which the Cape Verde national team is known, who, six minutes later, increased the score through Willy Semedo (54').

Just after the hour mark, in the 90th minute, veteran and returning defender Stopira sealed qualification with an infectious goal.

With this triumph, Cape Verde, this small country of just 4,033 square kilometers and less than 500,000 residents, but with the vast majority of its inhabitants scattered throughout the diaspora, consolidated its position at the top of Group D with 23 points, the result of seven wins, two draws and a single defeat in ten games, having left the emblematic Cameroon team by the wayside.

This is a long-awaited qualification that is being experienced with great enthusiasm and euphoria by the Cape Verdean population, whose celebrations throughout the day exceeded the maximum capacity of the country's largest sports facility, the Estadio Nacional, with 15,000 spectators.

A real party to crown the 50th anniversary of national independence, in the face of this world feat that makes Cape Verde one of the smallest nations in the world to stamp its passport to FIFA's biggest soccer competition. This feat comes 25 years after Cape Verde won its first international soccer trophy, the Amílcar Cabral Cup.

43 years after the founding of the Cape Verdean Football Federation and 39 years after its affiliation to FIFA on May 28, 1986, during the Executive Committee held in Mexico City at the time of the World Cup, Cape Verde, which would make its debut in a FIFA competition in this millennium, more precisely in April 2000, conquers the world with its irreverence, crowning the dream of the entire soccer generation of these Atlantic islands.

Five and a half centuries after its discovery, more precisely 565 years since it was found, historically attributed to the discoverers Diogo Gomes and Anthony Noli, Cape Verde will thus make an unprecedented appearance at the 2026 World Cup, to be played between the United States of America (the country with the largest Cape Verdean community in the diaspora), Mexico and Canada, where other African teams such as Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Ghana already live.

Technical sheet:

Team composition:

National Stadium in Achada de São Filipe, completely full, 15,000 spectators, on a scorching sunny afternoon and very colorful in a great party atmosphere

Refereeing: Ahmed Arajiga (main), assisted by Mohamed Mkono and Said Ally, (trio from Tanzania). Fourth official: Siyah.

Cape Verde: Josimar Dias "Vozinha" "cap" Edilson Borges 'Diney', Roberto Lopes "Pico", Kevin Pina, João Paulo Fernandes, Dailon Livramento, Jamiro Monteiro, Jair Semedo "Yannick", Willy Semedo, Ryan Mendes "GR", and Steven Moreira.