Weekly Roundup | 01/19/2026
A weekly roundup of all things football in Cabo Verde
We missed the weekend preview this past week due to some internet issues but will try again this week. A lot happened this past week in the archipelago and I know we’ve missed a few things but let’s jump right in.
International
FCF preparing training camps in Spain and Morocco ahead of WAFCON
As the women’s national team awaits the start of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, the Cabo Verdean Football Association (FCF) has planned two training camps. The first will be held in Spain with the second in Morocco, the host nation for this edition of the tournament. The team also learned of its group for the tournament, which will see them seek to progress past Ghana, Cameroon, and Mali. In their most recent games Cabo Verde defeated Mali over two legs in order to reach the WAFCON.
Cabo Verde guaranteed minimum $9 million prize from 2026 World Cup
Cabo Verde’s national football team has secured a historic place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, guaranteeing the country a minimum prize of $9 million after FIFA increased tournament payouts by 50 %. The decision was announced at a FIFA Council meeting in Doha. Overall, FIFA will distribute $727 million to member associations, with $655 million allocated directly to the participating nations on a sliding scale: $9 million for teams finishing 33rd‑48th and up to $50 million for the champion.
Boa Vista
Table tightens as África Show hold and mid‑table shifts after sixth round
The sixth round of the Campeonato Regional saw África Show drop points for the first time, sharing a 1‑1 draw with Sal-Rei after Djolass opened the scoring for Sal-Rei early in the second half and Argel equalized minutes later. Sporting also split points, drawing 2‑2 with Desportivo after Buma gave Sporting the lead, Enio equalised before halftime, a Bari own‑goal briefly put Desportivo ahead, and Birane forced a draw. Sunday’s remaining fixtures produced a 1‑0 victory for Académica Operária over Juventude thanks to an eighty‑minute strike by Nido, pushing Académica to nine points and overtaking Sporting, while Onze Estrelas rallied from an early deficit to beat Sanjoanense 2‑1 with goals from Djeny and Ary, bringing them to six points.
Brava
Benfica stands alone in 1st while the Taça looms
Benfica seized the lead of the regional league with a 3‑1 victory over Morabeza at the Estádio Aquiles de Oliveira, the two goals from Dy and the third from Gulo offset Sérgio’s lone strike for Morabeza. In the same round Nô Pintcha also earned three points by beating Académica 3‑1, with Delta, Cleiton and Ruben finding the net for the visitors and Kevin scoring Académica’s consolation goal.
The league fixtures will alternate with the Taça Brava, which begins on the 25th of the month and will involve the four clubs.
Fogo
Botafogo, Vulcânico, and Cutelinho joint top after dominant performances
Botafogo’s 7‑0 demolition of Valencia, Vulcânico’s 4‑0 victory over Desportivo, Cutelinho’s 3‑0 win against Nô Pintcha, Académica’s 3‑1 triumph over Luzabril and Juventus de Curral Grande’s 3‑0 success versus Baxada all came on the tenth matchday of the campeonato regional. it seems as though none of the teams at the top want to take their foot off the gas for fear of dropping down the table.
Try as I might I can not find results from the 2° Divisão and I’m beginning to wonder if the dates I had for the start of the competition were off.
Maio
ARFM votes to host competitions this season
Good news from the island of Maio as the regional FA voted to proceed with a regional football championship this year. This comes after a decision to suspend the second division on the island and integrate those teams into the first division.
Last season the island failed to host any regional competitions but with the vote the teams of Beira Mar, Morreirense, Onze Unidos, and Académico 83 can begin the process of registering themselves and players on the FIFA Connect platform. This should allow the regional championship to take place between this month and March with an opening tournament (Torneio de Abertura) to mark the start of the season.
Onze Unidos Marks 46‑Year Anniversary with Week‑Long Sports Festival
From January 16 to 20, Onze Unidos will host a week‑long celebration of its 46 years of existence at the Estádio Municipal Dau d’Segunda, featuring senior matches, veteran clashes, a parade, and a final communal lunch with games. The events showcase the club’s storied legacy, including 12 regional titles and the 2001 national championship, the sole national title won by a team from the island of Maio. The festival highlights community spirit, inter‑generational bonding, and the continued vitality of football on the island.
Sal
Académico narrows gap
With Palmeira dropping points the day before in a 0-0 draw with relegation threatened Florença, Académico was able to close the gap to first with a 3-0 win over Pahla Verde. Académica and Santa Maria drew to stay level on 12 points while Gaviões continued their strategy of only points from draws.
Fonte Riba and Rua D’Salina even on points
Fonte Riba’s loss coupled with Rua D’Salina doing the business against Pretória sees the two clubs even on points at the top of the table. Sal only has a single promotion/relegation place and currently Fonte Riba hold that place via goal difference. We still have eight more games to go so there’s plenty of time for either team to pull away, or for JURF and Juventude to join the party.
Santiago Norte
Following from last week’s roundup, Estrela dos Amadores had planned to honor Pedro Alexandre Lopes Correia as part of their match with GD Varandinha. Kunda, as he was known, was the captain of Estrela dos Amadores and passed away the previous week while playing in a local tournament that was part of the Festival Nhu Santo Amaro. Unfortunately, Varandinha failed to show for the game and the match was abandoned. Presumably Estrela dos Amadores will be awarded a 3-0 win but the ARFSN, the governing body in Santiago Norte, have yet to comment. There were also rumors that Varandinha planned to withdraw from competitions (spoiler, they did as you’ll see below) in Santiago Norte and we were awaiting an announcement from the club president.
This was to be the second of two games played to honor Kunda. The first saw Delta defeat Benfica 3-1.
Varandinha withdraws from Santiago Norte over governance and funding disputes
Varandinha announced that it did not appear for its scheduled match against Estrela dos Amadores on the 13th of January, citing a board decision to suspend participation in the Santiago North Regional Football Association (ARFSN) after denouncing several “serious” issues. Spokesperson Davide Soares accused the ARFSN president of interfering in player transfers and highlighted a case where an internationally‑certified Nigerian player was declared inactive (for Varandinha) just before a game, which they claimed led to their two defeats.
Soares also alleged mismanagement of the competition’s broadcast funding: money provided by sponsor GAFT Sport for live streaming was allegedly diverted, leading to the suspension of broadcasts. He claimed the diverted funds were used to cover travel costs for referees to Portugal and that ARFSN officials allegedly sold sports equipment abroad without club consent.
The club chose to withdraw while sitting second in the league, believing the protest would have maximum impact despite potential penalties. Regarding the recent tribute to the late player Kunda, Varandinha said it learned of the event only via social media and received no formal invitation, explaining its absence from the ceremony.
Taça Regional goes on despite the drama
The first round of knockout games in the regional cup took place this weekend. It played out mostly how you expected with higher ranked teams progressing easily with a couple of exceptions. Second Division EFD 100Tital managed to knockout relegation bound Benfica SC, currently on one point in the 1° Division, while ADAC, also in the 2° Division drew 2-2 with Flor Jovem only to be knocked out 3-4 on penalties. Flor Jove sit one place above Benfica SC in the 1° Division but with a much healthier 7 points from 9 games.
Santiago Sul
Santiago Sul tightens as Sporting’s win meets Desportivo’s push for the top
The 10th round of the Santiago South regional championship saw Sporting da Praia roar past Unidos do Norte 6‑2, lifting the capital side to fifteen points and propelling them into fourth place ahead of Académica and Vitória, who remained on fourteen after their 1‑1 draw. Meanwhile, Desportivo da Praia edged Celtic 1‑0 at the Estádio da Várzea, moving to twenty points and narrowing the gap to the joint leaders Travadores and Boavista, both sitting on twenty‑two points after a goalless stalemate that left Travadores ahead on goal difference. The weekend also featured Bairro’s 2‑1 victory over Ribeira Grande, Relâmpago’s 2‑0 win over Benfica, and a 1‑1 draw between Vitória and Académica, leaving little to separate the middle of table while lower‑ranked sides fight to avoid relegation.
Promotion spot still up for grabs
While Tchadense has separated itself from the rest of the table and is looking favored to return to the top flight, the second promotion spot is still well within reach for five teams. Tira Chapéu looks to get back on track after a run of three draws and a loss after starting the season on back-to-back wins. The next round marks the halfway point of the season but we look to be in store for an exciting finish.
Taça da Praia game on Tuesday to determine final Quarterfinal club
Boavista and Académica will face-off on Tuesday to determine the final quarterfinal participant in the Taça da Praia. The winner of that game will go on to play Sporting da Praia.
Santo Antão Norte
Rosariense and Solpontense win to take step closer to semifinals in Taça Regional
The regional cup has entered its climax with Rosariense earning its first victory by defeating Foguetões 2‑0, thanks to a double from Djosa after the Foguetões lost its head coach and a player to a red card. Meanwhile, Beira Mar and Solpontense battled each other to secure their first win, the latter later triumphing 3‑1 over Beira Mar with goals from Eder, Nilson and Patrick after a brief equaliser by Mota. The upcoming fifth and final qualifying round will pit Rosariense, who needs only a draw to guarantee progression, against Beira Mar, who must win to stay alive, while Solpontense and Santo Crucifixo have already secured their semifinal berths and Foguetões enjoy a bye. The competition, the first official tournament of the season, proceeds without the defending champion Paulense, who opted out of senior male football this year, setting the stage for a new champion to emerge after the semifinals on March 7th and the final following on April 4th.
Santo Antão Sul
Regional FA suspends competitions amid legal dispute and then changes course
The South Santo Antão Regional Football Association (ARFSAS) announced last week that all competitions in the region would be halted until a court rules on an injunction filed by the former board. The previous leadership, headed by Fernando Lima, lodged the injunction in December with the Porto Novo Judicial Court, seeking to annul the December 5 election of the current directors on the grounds that the process was overseen by a committee lacking requisite authority. The former board argues that the proper body to convene elections should have been the general assembly’s chair, which was still in office, and claims the election was illegal and amounted to a “coup” against the association.
The newly elected board cited an email from the Cape Verdean Football Federation (FCF) that does not recognize the actions of the committee responsible for the ARFSAS election. After the current association leader was barred from voting at the FCF’s recent elective general assembly, his vote being cast instead by former ARFSAS assembly president António Santos, the board decided to suspend all regional competitions pending the court’s decision, expected on Wednesday, the 14th. Should the court rule in favor of the former board, President Lenine Rocha said he and his colleagues would resign immediately.
Flash forward and the ARFSAS has withdrawn its earlier decision to halt competitions after meeting with the clubs prior to the fifth and final round of the first phase of the Taça Porto Novo. The reversal comes while we still await the outcome of the injunction filed by the former board.
Sanjoanenses and Académica Lead Porto Novo Cup as Inter Secures Semifinal Spot
Amidst all the noise of the ARFSAS, the final round of the league phase of the Taça Porto Novo Cup took place. Académica edged Lajedos 2‑1, tying the Sanjoanenses at eight points, while Inter dispatched Tarrafal 3‑0 to move into seventh place. These results confirm the four teams that will contest the semifinals on March 7th: Sanjoanenses, Académica, Inter, and Tarrafal. It feels like a lot to play 5 rounds of games to only elimate Lajedos, who finished with only one point. We now await the knockout stage of the cup while the regional championship is slated to begin on January 24th.
São Nicolau
Atlético and Praia Branca share the lead in title race
Atlético reinforced its position at the top of the championship with a 3‑0 win over Desportivo da Ribeira Brava, thanks to a brace from Kanadja and a goal from Djefry, while Praia Branca matched the tally by edging AJAT‑SN 2‑1 at the Estádio Orlando Rodrigues in Tarrafal. Ultramarina stayed close behind after a commanding 3‑0 victory over Chã de Poça, and Belo Horizonte secured three points with a narrow 1‑0 success against Mancha Verde.
São Vicente
Mindelense Leads Soncent Superliga while Lower‑Division Action and São Vicente Cup Fixtures Heat Up
Mindelense capped a flawless three‑match run with a 3‑1 victory over Castilho, securing an isolated lead in the Soncent Superliga, while Académica climbed to six points after a 2‑0 win over Derby, keeping the gap to the champions at three points. Batuque suffered its first defeat of the campaign, falling 1‑0 to Ponta de Pom, and Amarante’s 3‑0 triumph over the Falcões bolstered its tally to five points.
In the second division, Calhau edged out Corinthians, Salamansa overwhelmed Estoril, and Uni‑Mindelo comfortably beat São Pedro, adding fresh excitement to the lower tier. The São Vicente Regional Football Association also released the schedule for the opening round of the Taça São Vicente, with matches slated for the national holidays on the 20th and 22nd of January, featuring fixtures such as Calhau-Ponta de Pom, Amarante-Mindelense, Castilho-Salamansa and Estoril-Batuque.
Great work tracking things as always. Hope I can catch more of the WAFCON when that comes up. Any idea where it’ll be available?