Vozinha facts for kids

Josimar José Évora Dias (born on June 3, 1986), known by his nickname Vozinha, is a talented professional footballer from Cape Verde. He plays as a goalkeeper for the club Chaves in Liga Portugal 2. He also proudly represents his home country, the Cape Verde national team.

Vozinha has had an exciting career playing for clubs in many different countries. These include Cape Verde, Angola, Moldova, Portugal, Cyprus, and Slovakia. He has been a key player for the Cape Verde national team since 2012. He is even the second player with the most games played for his country! Vozinha has participated in five big international tournaments: the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013, 2015, 2021, and 2023, and the FIFA World Cup in 2026.

Who is Vozinha?

Vozinha, whose full name is Josimar José Évora Dias, was born in Mindelo, a city on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde. He started his football journey at a local club called Batuque. He played there until 2011.

Early Life and Club Journey

After his time at Batuque, Vozinha moved to another local team, Mindelense. In 2012, he took a big step in his career by joining Progresso do Sambizanga in Angola. He stayed with this club for three years.

Playing in Different Countries

In March 2015, Vozinha returned to Mindelense for a short period. He played in all the games of the Cape Verdean Championship that year, helping his team a lot.

Later in July 2015, he moved to Europe, joining Zimbru Chișinău in Moldova. A year later, in August 2016, Vozinha moved to Portugal to play for Gil Vicente in the Liga Portugal 2. He became known for his amazing penalty saves there, stopping five penalties in 32 games!

In June 2017, he moved again, this time to Cyprus, to play for AEL Limassol. He spent five successful years there. After Cyprus, in August 2022, Vozinha joined AS Trenčín in Slovakia. Most recently, in July 2024, he returned to Portugal to play for Chaves in Liga Portugal 2.

Representing Cape Verde

Vozinha first played for the Cape Verde national team on September 8, 2012. This was a very important match against Cameroon, which Cape Verde won 2-0. He also played in the second match, and even though they lost 2-1, Cape Verde qualified for their first big tournament!

At the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa, Vozinha helped his team reach the quarterfinals. They were eventually defeated by Ghana. He also played in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

On October 7, 2020, Vozinha played his 50th game for Cape Verde in a friendly match against Andorra. He was also part of the team for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

World Cup Heroics

Vozinha made his exciting FIFA World Cup debut at the 2026 FIFA World Cup for Cape Verde. In their very first game, Vozinha was incredible! He saved seven shots, helping Cape Verde achieve a 0-0 draw against a much higher-ranked team, Spain. His amazing performance earned him the Player of the Match Award.

At 40 years and 12 days old, Vozinha set a new record. He became the oldest player to ever play in a nation's first FIFA World Cup match! He also became one of the oldest goalkeepers to keep a clean sheet (meaning no goals were scored against him) in a World Cup game.

Off the Field

Vozinha has a younger brother named Delmiro, who is also a footballer from Cape Verde. Delmiro played for several clubs in Cyprus.

After his fantastic performance at the FIFA World Cup against Spain, Vozinha became very popular online. He gained over 6.7 million followers on Instagram! This happened after Brazilian and Portuguese YouTubers encouraged people to follow him to celebrate his amazing game.

Achievements and Trophies

Vozinha has won some important titles during his career:

• CS Mindelense
  • Cape Verdean Football Championship: 2015

• AEL Limassol
  • Cypriot Cup: 2018–19

See also

In Spanish: Vozinha para niños