Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha has been honoured in an unusual but fitting way following his remarkable World Cup performances, with a newly discovered species of marine sea slug named after him by Spanish biologist Jesus Ortea.
The species, a small red mollusc measuring roughly four millimetres, was found in the Caribbean near Havana, Cuba and the island of Guadeloupe. It has been formally classified as Aldisa vozinhai, or Vozinha’s sea slug, in Ortea’s published work Historias de la Bioadversidad. The researcher noted that the vivid red colouring of the creature served as a nod to Vozinha’s standout performance against Spain, a side nicknamed La Roja, meaning The Red One.
Ortea, professor emeritus of Animal Biology and Zoology at the University of Oviedo, timed his publication to coincide with the World Cup. He has form when it comes to blending his scientific work with his love of football. In 2019 he named a newly discovered marine sea snail after Costa Rica and former Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas, and a separate creature sharing the colours of Spanish club Sporting Gijon was named after the club’s former striker Quini.
His connection to Cape Verde runs deeper than admiration. Ortea was awarded the country’s Medal of Environmental Merit in 2023 in recognition of his contributions to the study of marine biodiversity around the archipelago, and the naming of the species was also his way of paying tribute to the Cape Verdean people.
Vozinha’s tournament was the stuff of fairytale. At 40 years and 12 days old, he became the oldest player to appear in a nation’s debut World Cup fixture when Cape Verde, the second smallest nation ever to reach the finals, held European champions Spain to a goalless draw in their opening group match. Vozinha produced seven saves that evening and was named man of the match. Cape Verde then progressed through the group stage before falling 3-2 after extra time to defending champions Argentina in the last 32, a match in which Vozinha again made seven saves in a display that earned widespread admiration.
The 91-time international, whose two-decade club career has taken him across Cape Verde, Moldova, Slovakia, Cyprus and Portugal, saw his public profile transform overnight. His Instagram following stood at 50,000 before the Spain match and has since surged to tens of millions.
