One of World Cup’s great stories – can Cape Verde become legends? To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Figure caption, Cape Verde continue to surprise with entertaining Uruguay draw By Adam Millington BBC Sport journalist Published 22 June 2026 Cape Verde’s World Cup campaign will go down in history – and they are now on the cusp of going a step further. They had already produced one of the biggest shocks of all time as they drew with Spain (who were 65 places higher in Fifa’s world rankings) in their tournament debut. The Blue Sharks showed their class again on the game’s biggest stage on Sunday by holding two-time winners Uruguay, and are in serious contention for a place in the knockouts. They were creative, entertaining and confident in their thrilling 2-2 draw , and also produced another dose of the steely determination that guided them to their shock result against Spain. The archipelago of 10 islands in the Atlantic Ocean, with a population of just under 525,000 according to the latest figures from the World Bank, have now held their own against two World Cup stalwarts. No heroics were needed from goalkeeper Vozinha – who rose from 40,000 Instagram followers before the game against Spain to more than 15 million – this time as they limited Uruguay to just two shots on target, but heroes were found at the other end of the pitch. “They will be checking their phones to see how many followers they have,” said former Wales defender Ashley Wiliams on BBC One. Vozinha’s mother was not able to attend the Spain match because of the high cost of obtaining a visa to enter the USA but she was present in Miami, and treated to an enthralling display. Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Helio Varela equalised for Cape Verde against Uruguay The 40-year-old keeper who inspired Cape Verde’s historic debut Published 15 June The key stats as Cape Verde earn shock draw against Spain Published 15 June From the first minute, Cape Verde employed an attack-minded game – constantly attempting to get the ball up the pitch to cause Uruguay trouble. The South American heavyweights found themselves on the ropes in the face of Cape Verde’s verve. Then came the history-making moment. Kevin Pina stepped up to take a 30-yard free-kick and Uruguay’s wall opted to part as they jumped, letting his arrowed effort find a path through the middle and go past keeper Fernando Muslera. Back in the archipelago’s capital of Praia, their first goal was met with jubilation. To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Figure caption, Cape Verde fan goes wild over first goal live on BBC News Written off by pundits going into their match against Uruguay – Williams and Benni McCarthy on BBC One both predicted they would lose – Cape Verde refused to follow the script. A gift led to the second goal which drew the scores level, but Helio Varela did well regardless to produce a deft touch to take the ball past the stranded Muslera before stroking it into the back of the net. After that, Cape Verde showed the defensive strength that made the difference against Spain to be able to hold on to a point. They made sure to combine it with their attacking threat, though, and continued to hunt for a way to snatch three points. It was a performance which led former South Africa striker McCarthy to say he has a “new lease of respect” for Cape Verde, and ex-Wales defender Williams to claim it was the “most entertaining” game he has covered at the World Cup so far. “They really came out to play,” said McCarthy. “They were sensational. I thought they were brave. “The only thing that’s needed is working on their final-third entry, that composure, working on those decisions in the final moment of the game. I think they’ve won a lot of people’s hearts after this performance.” One Cape Verde fan told BBC Sport at a fan park in the US that “everybody doubted us, everybody thought w