Cape Verde made World Cup history on Friday after becoming the smallest country to reach the tournament’s knockout stage. The African nation secured qualification with a 0-0 draw against Saudi Arabia in its final Group match.

The Blue Sharks finished the group stage unbeaten with three straight draws. They held 2010 champions Spain to a goalless draw before fighting back to earn a 2-2 draw against Uruguay. Spain’s victory over Uruguay later confirmed Cape Verde’s place in the round of 32.

Historic Achievement

Cape Verde, a country of just over 500,000 people, is making its World Cup debut. The team will now face defending champions Argentina in Miami on July 3.

“We are small,” goalkeeper Vozinha said. “But we have big hearts, and we are fighters.”

Coach Bubista praised his players for proving they could compete on football’s biggest stage.

“The team was very eager to show this to the whole world,” Bubista said. “We are proud of having arrived at this stage. We have shown that we are a small country, but that we fight for the things that we want to achieve.”

Before the match, Bubista had urged his team to believe.

“Everyone is entitled to dream, and nothing is impossible.”

Vozinha Leads the Way

The 40-year-old goalkeeper delivered another outstanding performance. He made several key saves to keep Saudi Arabia from scoring and helped Cape Verde secure the point they needed.

“There is a lot of quality in our national team,” Vozinha said. “Maybe for many of you, you think the Cape Verdean player is not good enough. But we came here to show that we have a lot of quality and we are here to compete and our players can play everywhere in the big competition, in the big leagues.”

Saudi Arabia finished with two points and exited the tournament, while Cape Verde celebrated the biggest achievement in the country’s football history.