LOS ANGELES: Evan Hand had seen viral sports moments before, but the one that changed how he understood soccer’s reach did not come from a superstar.
It came from Vozinha, Cape Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper, whose seven-save performance in a goalless draw against heavily favored Spain turned him into an overnight social media sensation.
“The big moment for me was the Vozinha thing,” said Hand, a sports content creator.
“It was seeing this dude gain 15 million followers basically overnight playing for a team where if you were to look on a map, you could not tell me where Cape Verde is right now. “(NFL star) Tom Brady has less followers than this guy has, and he had arguably the most dominant run in the history of sports. So that was a moment for me.” For many American sports fans, this World Cup has delivered a similar jolt.
As fans from around the world pack stadiums, television audiences surge and US supporters crowd fan festivals and sports bars, the tournament has offered a vivid reminder that soccer is not a niche sport trying to crack the American mainstream.
