Following Cape Verde’s impressive 0–0 draw with Spain, goalkeeper Vozinha has experienced a surge in popularity, gaining over five million new followers on social media.
Before Cape Verde’s World Cup debut, Vozinha, also known as Josimar Dias, had about 45,000 followers on Instagram.
The 40-year-old goalkeeper became an overnight sensation after keeping Spain, one of the tournament favourites, scoreless in the Group H encounter.
The result earned Cape Verde their first-ever World Cup point in their debut appearance at the competition.
Spain registered 27 shots during the match, but Vozinha produced a series of key saves to secure a clean sheet, earning FIFA’s Man of the Match award in the process.
He also became one of the oldest goalkeepers in World Cup history to keep a clean sheet in a tournament match.
Following his performance, social media users flocked to his Instagram page, pushing his following past two million within hours and continuing to climb rapidly thereafter.