The tiny African island nation of Cape Verde continued its historic debut World Cup run by holding Uruguay to a 2-2 draw in Miami on Sunday night.
The local Cape Verdean community celebrated at a viewing party at their social club in the Hollow neighborhood of Bridgeport.
The packed room erupted with jubilation when the country scored its first-ever World Cup goal from a 28-yard free kick twenty minutes into the match.
“My confidence level went up through the roof, especially after this goal," said Armando Barboza from Seymour.
“I know we're gonna win. I already prayed on that. We are a small country, but we have big hearts,” said Nadia from Ansonia, in light of her country's population being only about 500,000.
By halftime, Uruguay had equalized and were up by a goal. But the Cape Verdean fans were not demoralized.
“We still got hope. We are trying to keep everybody motivated,” Barboza said.
They weren’t disappointed. Their team tied the game in the second half.
“For me, this is like an unbelievable moment in my 50th year. I can never imagine ever seeing my country on the world stage. So, this is an amazing opportunity for us,” he said.
In the first match of the tournament, Cape Verde had held European powerhouse Spain to a 0-0 draw.
The team’s next match is against Saudi Arabia on Friday, a team that has lost to both Uruguay and Spain.
