A tiny island nation of roughly 600,000 people just punched its ticket to the biggest sporting event on the planet. Cape Verde has qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, finishing first in its CAF qualifying group with 23 points from ten matches.
The celebration, however, comes with an asterisk the size of a customs form. US visa restrictions may require Cape Verdean citizens to post bonds of up to $15,000 just to attend games hosted in the United States, one of three co-host nations alongside Canada and Mexico.
A perfect home record and a historic run
The Blue Sharks won eight of its ten qualifying matches and maintained a perfect home record without conceding a single goal.
That defensive record at home is the kind of stat that makes you read it twice. Zero goals conceded across an entire qualifying campaign on home soil is exceptional at any level, and Cape Verde has never previously reached a World Cup finals.
