This Friday, July 3, Argentina -led by Lionel Messi- will face Cape Verde in the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, a country that has become one of the surprises of the top soccer tournament in the world.
This team from Africa – to which the betting houses barely gave a 1% probability of passing the group stage – participates for the first time in a World Cup edition and has accumulated three draws against countries of the caliber of Spain and Uruguay. Against Pedri’s country, the figure of Vozinha, the Cape Verde goalkeeper who covered everything during the match, stood out.
LOOK | Ducati: “We are seeing a lot of demand for the brand’s limited editions”
How is the economy of this country doing that has goalkeeper Vozinha, 40, as its most prominent figure in the World Cup?
Cape Verde is a small country but with great projection. According to the World Bank, this nation of 10 archipelagos (9 of them are inhabited) has a population of 520,500 people. Despite its size, it is very attractive for tourism.
(Photo: AFP)
Just as a fact, at the end of last year the African country reached 1.25 million international tourists, the highest number recorded in its history. The result confirms the sustained growth of the tourism sector, considered one of the main economic drivers of the island country.
If we compare it with a South American country, the number of tourists who came to the island is very close to the international tourists who arrived in Ecuador last year, around 1.3 million. And far from the 4.1 million that Peru received.
This tourism sector is so important to Cape Verde’s economy, it represents a quarter (25%) of its GDP.
How long do tourists stay in the country? According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE) of Cape Verde, the average stay is 4.8 nights.
According to the World Bank, the African nation’s growth is estimated to have accelerated to reach approximately 7.2% in 2024, driven by the strengthening of tourism activity and a gradual recovery in agricultural activity.
Last year, Cape Verde achieved 5.9% growth and the World Bank estimates that it will be able to have a stability of 5% in the medium term due to improvements in the efficiency of the public sector and the work of Cape Verde to attract private investment.
Its annual inflation rate, which is the generalized and sustained increase in the prices of goods and services over a 12-month period, in 2025 was 2.3% and in May 2026, this figure was 1.7%. A low and controlled inflation rate.
If we compare it with Peruvian figures, it is higher than Peru’s inflation rate in 2025, when our country closed at 1.5%, according to INEI.
According to the World Bank, Cape Verdean inflation moderated significantly in 2024, with lower energy and food prices reducing average headline inflation.
This is the location of Cape Verde on Google Maps.
There have been improvements in employability figures. The unemployment rate in 2025 reached 6.2%, when in 2023 it was 10.3%. However, extreme poverty in Cape Verde reaches 13.1%, the entity estimated.
But tourism is not the only thing that drives the economy of this country, which belongs to the Economic Community of West African States bloc. The exports of Cape Verde In 2025 they reached approximately US$96 million, while their imports registered US$2,043 million, according to the World Trade Organization.
What are the most notable destinations for your shipments? According to the INE, the main destination of Cape Verde’s exports in 2025 were Spain (63%), Italy (12.1%) and Portugal (11.2%).
