{"id":225926,"date":"2026-09-29T05:48:29","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T05:48:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/cape-verde-goalkeeper-vozinha-wishes-he-could-return-to-life-before-world-cup-fame-today-com\/"},"modified":"2026-09-29T05:48:29","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T05:48:29","slug":"cape-verde-goalkeeper-vozinha-wishes-he-could-return-to-life-before-world-cup-fame-today-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/cape-verde-goalkeeper-vozinha-wishes-he-could-return-to-life-before-world-cup-fame-today-com\/","title":{"rendered":"Cape Verde Goalkeeper Vozinha Wishes He Could Return to Life Before World Cup Fame – TODAY.com"},"content":{"rendered":"

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TODAY
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Ariana Brockington
Trending News Reporter
Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha is speaking out about his newfound fame following the 2026 FIFA World Cup,<\/a> revealing that he longs for the days before millions knew his name.
Over the summer, the 40-year-old athlete, whose given name is Josimar Jos\u00e9 \u00c9vora Dias, became a viral sensation<\/a> as fans learned more about him and his team\u2019s underdog story. Since then, he has gained over 28 million followers on Instagram and his posts receive thousands of comments.
But in a recent interview with British newspaper The Observer<\/a>, Vozinha opened up about the struggles that come with celebrity.
\u201cI\u2019ve lost my peace and tranquillity,\u201d he told the publication. \u201cI no longer have any privacy, or at least much less than I used to. Now I go out, I go to a restaurant, and there\u2019s always someone who wants to take a photo with me or asks me for an autograph.\u201d
\u201cOr, worse, someone is filming me. That\u2019s what has changed most in my life, and I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything I can do about it,\u201d he added. Fans have also been showing up at his mother\u2019s home in Cape Verde.
According to the newspaper, Vozinha had 56,000 followers on Instagram before his team\u2019s unforgettable opening match against Spain, which ended in a 0-0 draw. When the final whistle blew, he already had more than 1 million.
Vozinha said he learned about his popularity from a member of the team\u2019s catering staff. He didn\u2019t believe him at first. But after seeing the numbers himself, he re-hired a former manager to help him manage his growing fame.
\u201cI decided to turn off my Instagram notifications so I wouldn\u2019t be tempted to keep checking who was following me,\u201d he shared.
The goalkeeper revealed he wishes he could return to the life he had before the tournament.
\u201cA lot of people want to be famous and have a public profile, but they only see the positive side of that reality,\u201d he explained. \u201cTo be honest, if I were offered the life I have today or the life I had before, I\u2019d choose the one I had before.\u201d
However, he does acknowledge the benefits of becoming an international star, like the attention his home country has received.
\u201cIt\u2019s nice to feel like a kind of ambassador, but I want to make it clear that what we achieved was a collective effort. We made history and the best news would be if we could harness that momentum to develop our country and improve the living conditions of our people,\u201d he said.
Vozinha had a relatively late start in the sport \u2014 he didn\u2019t go pro until his early 20s. He gained attention and admiration during the major sporting event this summer as it was the first FIFA World Cup for the goalkeeper and his country. He stopped 27 shots, with seven official saves, in his matchup with Spain. After the match, he became visibly emotional as he embraced his teammates and the Spanish players.
When he previously spoke to NBC News\u2019 Jesse Kirsch<\/a> in June about his growing fandom, he said the public response to him was \u201cinsane.\u201d
He continued, \u201cIt\u2019s unbelievable. I just have to say thank you to all of them, to all of the followers.\u201d
The athlete also went up against Argentina and Lionel Messi in a July match. He had previously said it was his dream to play against the soccer legend. During their match, he made eight saves<\/a>, pushing the 2022 champs to their limit. However, Argentina beat Cape Verde 3-2 in extra time.
Vozinha has since signed with Chilean team Colo-Colo and made his debut with the team<\/a> in late August.
Ariana Brockington is a trending news reporter at TODAY digital. She is based in Los Angeles.
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLCApple\u00ae, Apple logo\u00ae and App Store\u00ae are registered trademarks of Apple Inc.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Exclusive Deals on Stony Clover Lane, Ninja, Haus Labs and More TODAYStart TODAYSteals & Deals, Boxes & Last Chance MarketAriana BrockingtonTrending News ReporterCape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha is speaking out about his newfound fame following the 2026 FIFA World Cup, revealing that he longs for the days before millions knew his name. Over the summer, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":225927,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-225926","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225926","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225926"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225926\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/225927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}