 Sandro won 12 caps for Portugal at youth level, four at under-20 and eight at under-21.He chose to represent Cape Verde as a senior, making his debut on 5 June 2004 in a 1–2 away loss to South Africa in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.After retiring, Mendes returned to Vitória de Setúbal as youth system coordinator and under-17 coach.