Vozinha: The 40-year-old Cape Verde goalkeeper who stunned Spain at the World Cup

Josimar José Évora Dias — known universally as Vozinha — produced one of the most remarkable individual goalkeeping performances of the 2026 World Cup on Monday, making seven saves to earn Cape Verde a 0-0 draw against second-ranked Spain in their Group H opener.

The 40-year-old was in inspired form throughout, producing a string of leaping and diving saves late in the first half before repelling further pressure in the second. When the final whistle blew, Vozinha was visibly overcome with emotion, holding back tears as teammates embraced him on the pitch.

“I worked all my life for this, for this moment, for this dream,” Vozinha said after the match. “A lot of generations in the past were dreaming of this. They did not get there. Now, the dream has come true. We deserved to be here today. A great game against Spain because they are one of the best national teams in the world.”

The result ranks as the fourth-most surprising in World Cup history by FIFA ranking differential — Cape Verde entered the tournament 67th in the world, Spain second.

Vozinha’s performance also placed him in elite historical company. He became the third-oldest goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet in a men’s World Cup match, behind only England’s Peter Shilton (40 years, 281 days) and Italy’s Dino Zoff (40 years, 130 days), according to Fox Sports Research. He is the oldest goalkeeper to blank the opposition on his World Cup debut, and just the second keeper aged 40 or older to make at least seven saves in a World Cup match since 1966, per Opta.

The name Vozinha has followed him since childhood. Raised by his grandparents while his father served in the military and his mother worked, he was given the nickname by them from an early age. It became official, in a sense, when he moved to Angola to play for Progresso and found another goalkeeper already registered as Josimar.

“I said I am not going to put Josimar II on the shirt — if everyone knew me as Vozinha in Cape Verde, that’s what I would be,” he told FIFA.

Vozinha brought 90 international caps into Monday’s match, having made his senior debut for Cape Verde in 2012. Over the past year alone he recorded nine clean sheets for the national side, including three in five appearances at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. He currently plays his club football for Chaves in Liga Portugal 2, Portugal’s second division.