Cabo Verde have qualified for the FIFA World Cup™ for the first time. They achieved the feat by securing top spot in Group D of the African qualifying tournament ahead of Cameroon – quarter-finalists at the 1990 global showpiece.
Their successful qualification was built on a solid defence which saw them record seven clean sheets in their ten group matches. They did not concede a goal at home in the entire qualifying campaign.
A country of just over 500,000 people, Cabo Verde has become the third-least populous nation to reach the World Cup, after Curaçao who broke the record when they qualified for the 2026 finals and Iceland which had a population of approximately 340,000 when its national team reached the 2018 finals.