Jun 23, 2026
Like most people, Roberto Lopes ignored a message from a stranger on LinkedIn.
The Dublin banker, nicknamed “Pico,” was balancing a day job in finance with part-time soccer for Shamrock Rovers when the message arrived in 2018. Written in Portuguese and sent by someone he didn’t know, it was easy to dismiss.
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Then came a follow-up.
Nine months later, Cape Verde national team coach Rui Águas reached out again, this time in English, asking whether Lopes had seen his original note. Curious, Lopes copied the message into Google Translate.
‘We’re looking at getting new players into the Cape Verde squad and would you be interested in declaring for Cape Verde?’” Lopes told BBC Sport.
That overlooked message ended up changing the course of his career. Today, the 33-year-old is helping Cape Verde compete at its first-ever World Cup after trading a career in banking for professional soccer.
“I was not enjoying the work,” Lopes said of his former desk job.
A life-changing message
Once the paperwork was sorted, things moved quickly. Within weeks, Lopes was representing Cape Verde for the first time, stepping onto the field against Togo.
Over the next seven years, Lopes helped transform Cape Verde from an underdog into a World Cup qualifier. The feat is even more remarkable given Cape Verde’s size. Home to roughly 530,000 people, it’s one of the smallest countries ever to qualify for the men’s World Cup.
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“From when I was a young child, and I imagine every aspiring footballer when they were young, they wanted to play at the highest level possible and, for me, it doesn’t go any further than the World Cup,” Lopes said.
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Leaving a stable paycheck behind
While the chance to represent Cape Verde was exciting, there was no guarantee it would translate into a long-term career in soccer.
“It was risky because I was in a solid job,” Lopes said in a FIFA video. “Where our league was at that moment, there wasn’t much security in terms of a career in football, so when [Águas] spoke to me about his plan, his ideas, and what he had going forward, I had to be a part of it.”
His concerns weren’t unfounded. While fans often associate professional soccer with multimillion-dollar contracts, FIFA has cited research from players’ union FIFPRO showing that more than 45% of professional footballers worldwide earn less than US$1,000 per month.
The tradeoff between stability and opportunity extends far beyond sports. Priya Rathod, workplace trends editor at Indeed, says pursuing a passion can mean accepting uncertainty.
“A stable job may offer predictable hours, benefits, and a clear career path, but it might not align with your creative or purpose-driven aspirations,” she told Investopedia. “On the other hand, pursuing what you love could mean irregular income, fewer traditional perks, and a less linear trajectory.”
Cape Verde’s dream run continues
For Lopes, the decision to take a chance on soccer has led farther than he ever imagined.
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Cape Verde followed its scoreless draw against Spain with a 2-2 result against Uruguay, keeping alive the possibility of a spot in the knockout stage. The tournament newcomer has emerged as one of the biggest surprises of the expanded 48-team World Cup.
After the match, Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitão Brito said the team’s success shows that smaller nations can compete with far larger and wealthier opponents.
“We’re also here to show that a country may be small, may struggle financially, but if they are resilient, if they can endure struggle, they can also stand shoulder to shoulder with other major teams and with players who are on another level,” he said through an interpreter.
Not every LinkedIn connection changes your life. Seven years after replying to one he almost ignored, Lopes is helping Cape Verde keep its World Cup dream alive.
“Being able to represent my family playing for the national team and being able to put our family name out there at one of the biggest sporting events in the world fills me with great pride,” Lopes said.
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Victoria Vesovski is a Toronto-based staff reporter at Moneywise covering personal finance, lifestyle and trending news. She holds degrees from the University of Toronto and New York University, and her work has appeared on platforms including Yahoo Finance, MSN Money and Apple News.
