Virgin Media Television is filling a World Cup gap in the schedule on Sunday night with Shamrock Rovers captain and Cape Verde international Roberto “Pico” Lopes to feature on The Big Interview with Colette Fitzpatrick at 9 pm on Virgin Media One and Virgin Media Play.
He will reflect on a remarkable few weeks in which the Crumlin native became one of the standout human stories of the FIFA World Cup.
Fresh from helping Cape Verde make history on their World Cup debut, Lopes returns home having played every minute of the country’s run to the knockout stages. Their campaign ended in dramatic fashion with an extra-time defeat to Argentina, but not before the squad had captured attention around the world and pride among Cape Verdean communities at home and abroad.
The interview will look beyond the pitch as well as on it, with Lopes joined by his wife, Leah, and mother, Judie, offering a family perspective on the sacrifices, emotions, and pride behind his journey from Dublin football to the biggest stage in the game.
He is back in training with Shamrock Rovers now, having returned home on Monday and been part of the RTÉ panel analysis of Argentina’s win over Egypt in the Round of 16.
His media accessibility has been outstanding, a rarity these days in big-time football, and a lot of credit has to go to Cathal Dervan, once of the press room and the FAI, who has guided the story under the banner of his new agency OTS Media.
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Image Credit: OTS Media
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