Cape Verde's World Cup hero Vozinha will have to play with a different name on his shirt at his new club Colo-Colo.
Why? ANFP rules forbid players from wearing a nickname on the back of their shirt. Vozinha will therefore play for Chile's record champions under his real name.
That name is Josimar Evora Dias. At Colo-Colo, the goalkeeper must now decide whether to wear "Evora Dias", just "Evora" or just "Dias" on the back of his jersey.
For the Chilean giants, that is a real irritation, because they had hoped Vozinha would deliver a marketing win as well as strengthening the side on the pitch. The 40-year-old had become world-famous overnight thanks to his outstanding display for underdogs Cape Verde in the 0-0 draw against eventual world champions Spain in their World Cup opener. As a result, his number of Instagram followers rocketed from just under 50,000, and Vozinha is now followed by almost 30 million people on the social media platform.
Every one of them is a potential buyer of a Colo-Colo shirt with the name Vozinha on the back. Having the keeper play under his real name is unlikely to do much for shirt sales.
Following his star turn against Spain, Vozinha kept delivering as the tournament went on and sensationally reached the knockout phase with World Cup newcomers Cape Verde. In the round of 32, Vozinha and Co. then pushed overwhelming favourites Argentina and even dared to dream of a huge shock, but Cape Verde only went down 3-2 to Lionel Messi and Co. after extra time.
Most recently, Vozinha spent two years with Portuguese second-division side GD Chaves, where his contract expired this summer. After his strong World Cup performances, several clubs showed an interest in the goalkeeper, while Real Betis and clubs from Saudi Arabia are also said to have tried to tempt him. But Vozinha recently chose Colo-Colo, signing a deal with the record champions from Santiago de Chile until the end of the year. The club can extend it by a further year through an option.
There, Vozinha will also line up alongside former Bayern Munich and Juventus star Arturo Vidal. The 39-year-old midfielder returned to his home club at the start of 2024, having first set out from there into the wider world of football.
