Much credit for Cape Verde’s performances must go to coach Bubista, a former international himself who has been in charge since January 2020.
A stable coaching set-up has allowed the 56-year-old former centre-back to build a compact and well-drilled side with an organised defence, technical midfielders and gifted forwards who upset Ghana and drew with Egypt during a run to the quarter-finals at Afcon 2023, having only made their tournament debut 10 years earlier.
They may have had Vozinha to thank for the seven saves the veteran goalkeeper made in the goalless draw with Spain, but their discipline was underlined by the fact the Blue Sharks only conceded one foul against the 2010 champions – the fewest recorded by a team in a World Cup match since 1966.
“We always train and play as one unit, so everything we did in the game was not our first time that we did it,” defender Sidny Lopes Cabral told the BBC World Service.
“For us, it’s our game. This is how we play, this is who we are.
“This is our personality as a team and as defenders.”
Cape Verde took a more attacking and expansive approach in their second Group H outing against Uruguay, but also demonstrated their steely resolve by grabbing a second-half equaliser.
“More important than the result is to be able to show our identity as a team, our strength, our unity, and also our resilience,” Bubista said.
Bubista was recognised for his achievement in delivering World Cup qualification by being named the continent’s coach of the year for 2025 by the Confederation of African Football.
He has always believed that his side had the potential to mix it with the world’s elite.
“We have done really well considering how small our country is,” he told BBC Sport Africa before the 2021 Afcon, when the Blue Sharks reached the last 16.
“I think in the future we’ll be at the World Cup.”
That bold prediction has come to pass, and now Bubista hopes Cape Verde’s achievements at the expanded tournament can inspire other underdogs around the globe.
“I believe that football belongs to everyone, or is for everyone,” he said.
