Cape Verde's Final Push: A Tight Plan to a Historic World Cup

Road to a Historic World Cup

Cape Verde's national team stands one victory away from sealing a World Cup berth for 2026, highlighting the bright trajectory the squad has shown in recent years—an achievement many thought improbable two decades ago.

With a population of around 600,000, the archipelago would become the second-smallest nation to reach the World Cup finals, behind Iceland, if they win one of their two remaining Africa qualifiers for the 2026 tournament.

The team travels to Libya for an away game on Wednesday before hosting Eswatini next Monday, aiming to top Group 4 and outpace Cameroon to secure direct qualification to the finals.

Cape Verde previously reached the later stages of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers in Brazil, but points were deducted due to a suspended player, ruling them out of the decisive playoff rounds that could have sealed qualification.

In their first Africa Cup of Nations appearance in 2013, Cape Verde reached the quarterfinals; the coach celebrated with a song after the press conference, and the side repeated that achievement in the recent edition in Ivory Coast, though they bowed out on penalties.

The team is rapidly developing by recruiting players based abroad across the globe, a sign of a broader, smarter recruitment strategy that looks beyond the home islands.

Diaspora Strategy and Key Players

A growing talent pipeline has begun to bear fruit. A Cape Verdean agent based in the United States notes that the federation has laid out new plans to identify and recruit players from Cape Verdeans living abroad through large gatherings of migrants around the world.

The recruitment push began paying dividends in 2013, when Cape Verde first reached the Africa Cup of Nations finals, marking a historic milestone for a small nation.

Historically, scarce natural resources and the islanders' arid environment fostered migration since the Portuguese era, with many Cape Verdeans heading to Portugal and others to the U.S. East Coast and Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Today the squad includes six players born in the Netherlands, along with others born in Portugal, France and Ireland, illustrating the strong diaspora connection fueling the team’s evolution.

Among the notable players is Roberto “Pico” Lopes, a center-back from Shamrock Rovers, who represents the kind of talent Cape Verde has been able to attract through diverse avenues and voices within the diaspora.

Lopes recalls how a LinkedIn message during university nearly slipped by as a scam in Portuguese; nine months later a follow-up note invited him to consider representing Cape Verde, and he seized the opportunity to join the national squad.

That story mirrors a broader trend: talent discovery through modern networks is paying off, with more European-based players inclined to represent Cape Verde to showcase their abilities on the international stage.

The agent notes that in the past it was more difficult to attract high-level players with Cape Verdean roots in Europe, but the recent run of successes has lowered barriers as players see a clearer path to big-stage exposure.

If Cape Verde can win in Tripoli on Wednesday, the road will look more straightforward; if not, there remains a strong chance to seal qualification when Eswatini hosts them on Monday. The Cameroon victory last month sparked wide celebrations across the Cape Verdean community, and many expect similar energy if a World Cup berth is secured.

The Africa qualifiers for 2026 wrap up in October, at the end of the tenth round, after which all of Africa's slots for the next World Cup will be decided. FIFA’s expansion to 48 teams in 2026 has opened doors for nations that previously faced higher barriers to qualification, a development that heightens the appeal of Cape Verde’s current push.

It’s worth noting that the 2026 World Cup will be staged across the United States, Canada and Mexico, a multi-nation format that mirrors the broadened scope of modern football.

The same expansion trend is expected to shape 2030 as well, with Morocco, Spain and Portugal set to host the tournament, continuing a pattern of shared hosting among multiple nations.

Cape Verde’s story is a powerful reminder that small nations can punch above their weight when opportunity meets prepared talent. If they qualify, expect a party where the oceans themselves seem to echo with the rhythm of hometown drums.

Punchline time: If Cape Verde makes it, even the Atlantic will tip its hat to a plan that was tighter than a drumline at a seaside parade.

Final punchline: When tiny islands dream big, the trophy might need a passport too—and a bigger suitcase for all the confetti from the diaspora bars.