The Blue Sharks touched down in Praia on Sunday to a reception that fused sporting ecstasy with the rituals of independence. As the archipelago marked 51 years since the end of Portuguese colonial rule, a sea of flags, drumming and dancing engulfed the airport and the capital’s main thoroughfares. President José Maria Neves received the squad at the presidential palace, telling them that while Argentina won the match, “Cabo Verde triumphed.” The homecoming, which also saw the men’s basketball team clinch a second-round World Cup qualifying berth, turned into a rolling national festival that stretched from the tarmac to the coastal gathering point of Kebra Kanela.

The journey that ignited this outpouring began with three group-stage draws, including a goalless stalemate against European champions Spain, and ended in the round of 32 with a 3-2 extra-time defeat to the holders. Cape Verde twice came from behind against Argentina: a Lionel Messi opener was cancelled out, and after the South Americans edged ahead in extra time, Sidny Lopes Cabral’s spectacular strike levelled the contest at 2-2. A deflected Cristian Romero header off Diney Borges finally broke the deadlock with minutes remaining, denying the lowest-ranked side in the knockout phase a penalty shootout. Across the tournament, the team scored four goals and conceded five, while 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha recorded 18 saves — a tally exceeded at a single World Cup by only Peter Shilton in 1990 and Dino Zoff in 1982 among players of his age.

Vozinha’s performances turned the former Chaves second-division keeper into a global figure. His Instagram following surged past 25 million, overtaking Iker Casillas, Keylor Navas and Thibaut Courtois to make him the most-followed goalkeeper on the platform. That digital footprint mirrored a wider shift in perception: a nation of roughly 500,000 people, the smallest by land mass ever to appear at a men’s World Cup, had held Spain, Uruguay and Argentina to draws inside 90 minutes. Coach Bubista, who had spent time observing Cruzeiro’s training centre before the tournament, said his players had shown they “can play against the best teams in the world” and that qualification was “not luck.”

Viewed from Praia, the campaign rewrote the coordinates of possibility for a football federation that had never before reached the global finals. The coincidence of the return with Independence Day amplified the symbolism, but the sporting calendar offered its own concrete follow-up: the basketball team’s weekend victory over Libya secured progress in 2027 World Cup qualifying, ensuring that the country’s presence in global sport extends beyond a single tournament. As the footballers were paraded through the streets on an open truck, signing shirts and posing for selfies, the next generation of Cape Verdean athletes already had a new benchmark to chase.