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A LinkedIn message once dismissed as spam changed Roberto Lopes’ life. Now, the Cape Verde defender is living his World Cup dream after helping stop Spain.
Cape Verde defender Roberto Lopes in action against Spain at the FIFA World Cup 2026 (Getty Images/X)
Social media recruiting isn’t just for college graduates and transfer portals. Sometimes, it can change a footballer’s life too.
Just ask Roberto Lopes.
The Cape Verde defender played a key role as his nation held European champions Spain to a stunning 0-0 draw in their FIFA World Cup 2026 opener.
But long before he was making crucial blocks on football’s biggest stage, Lopes was working a regular desk job and building a career away from the pitch.
Today, the Shamrock Rovers centre-back is living a World Cup dream that almost never happened, all because of a LinkedIn message he initially ignored.
How It All Transpired
Back in 2019, former Cape Verde head coach Rui Águas discovered that Lopes, whose father was born in the African island nation, was eligible to represent the country under FIFA rules.
Unable to easily contact him through conventional football channels, Águas turned to an unlikely platform: LinkedIn.
The first message never got through — at least not in the way he intended.
“It is a crazy story of how I started in international football,” Lopes told FIFPro. “Basically during college, I set up a LinkedIn account, connected with a few friends and left it in the dark for a few years.”
“Then one day, I got a message from the manager of the Cape Verde team at the time, Rui Águas. He dropped a welcome message in Portuguese, which I didn’t speak at the time. I just assumed it was like, ‘thanks for connecting with me,’ message or spam.”
Lopes admitted he completely dismissed the approach.
“I thought it was a spam message and I took no notice of it,” he later told BBC Sport.
Nine months later, Águas tried again.
The follow-up message read: “Hi Roberto, have you had a chance to consider what I said to you?”
This time, Lopes ran it through Google Translate.
“I was absolutely buzzing with that,” he told BBC Sport. “I was like, ‘Yep, 100 percent I’d love to be a part of the squad.'”
“It was a weird angle to come at (via LinkedIn),” Lopes added. “But when I saw the opportunity was there in front of me, I was 100% behind it from minute one.”
Known affectionately as “Pico”, Lopes made his Cape Verde debut later that year — and on Monday, he was helping his adopted football nation frustrate Spain on the World Cup stage.
Not too bad for a LinkedIn notification once mistaken for spam, is it?
About the Author
After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His…Read More
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