Diogo Jota: Liverpool soccer star and Portugal international dies in car crash two weeks after wedding
The Portuguese player had married his long-time partner Rute Cardoso just two weeks ago.
According to Portuguese reports, Jota's fatal crash took place in the city of Zamora in Spain's central North.
He had represented his country 49 times.
Jota and his wife had been together since 2012 and shared three children.
The Liverpool forward proposed to Ms Cardoso in July 2022, and in an Instagram post several days ago, the pair shared pictures from their wedding day.
More to come.
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7NEWS
2 hours ago
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Carlton forward Jesse Motlop pays tribute to Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota with unique goal celebration
Carlton small forward Jesse Motlop has paid tribute to late Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota with a unique goal celebration on Friday night. Jota, 28, and his brother Andre Silva, a 26-year-old fellow footballer in their native Portugal, were killed in a car crash near Zamora in the north-west of Spain in the early hours of Thursday morning. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Jesse Motlop pays tribute to late footballer Diogo Jota. Authorities said their Lamborghini suffered a tyre blow-out while overtaking another then left the road, crashed and caught fire, with the two siblings found dead after emergency services arrived. After kicking a goal in the first quarter of their AFL blockbuster against Collingwood, Motlop sat down with his legs crossed and gestured like he was playing on a video game console. Channel 7's commentary team were initially confused about the meaning of the celebration, but soon worked out that it was Jota's trademark. Watching a replay of the celebration at quarter-time, Hamish McLachlan said: 'Now, we saw the Motlop goal and celebration during that opening quarter; I'm told this is a nod to the late Liverpool soccer player, Diogo Jota — that was his trademark celebration after he scored. 'The Portuguese footballer who tragically died with his brother in the car crash. Terribly sad.' Jota had married his long-time partner Rute Cardoso on June 22. 'Yes to forever,' they wrote on social media. The couple share three children together. The ceremony took place just weeks after a busy but successful period on the pitch for Jota. He won the English Premier League with Liverpool in May, having scored six goals in 26 games on their way to the title. 'Liverpool Football Club are devastated by the tragic passing of Diogo Jota,' the club said. 'Liverpool FC will be making no further comment at this time and request the privacy of Diogo and Andre's family, friends, teammates and club staff is respected as they try to come to terms with an unimaginable loss. We will continue to provide them with our full support.' Authorities are trying to determine how fast the Lamborghini was going when it veered off the A-52 motorway and crashed. Authorities were spotted investigating the scene on Thursday. When the car was removed from the area, it was totally destroyed, a burnt-out shell. 'At this moment in time it is impossible to say at exactly what speed the car was going, but that is something the Civil Guard investigators will be able to detail at least approximately in their final report from things like the skid marks,' the law enforcement agency said. 'What I can confirm is that no other vehicle was involved and no one else was hurt. '(And) everything points to the blowout of a tyre while it (the vehicle) was overtaking.' It has been reported that the Lamborghini was overtaking another car at the time. A Spanish government source has reportedly said they are thinking the double tragedy was 'a possible speeding incident' but it take could take days before a preliminary report is finished.
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SBS Australia
5 hours ago
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Tributes pour in for Diogo Jota: 'He was what we'd all like to be'
"As we prepare for a moment of silence, let's remember Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva." It's left the football world in a state of shock. Portugal and Spain observed a minute's silence at the UEFA Women's EURO 2025, as they paid tribute to Liverpool's forward star Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva. The Portuguese player and his brother - who is also a professional footballer for Portuguese second-tier club Penafiel - both died in a car crash near Zamora in northwestern Spain, aged 28 and 26 respectively. According to local authorities, Jota and his brother died when the car they were in veered off the road and burst into flames. Spanish police say evidence at the scene of the crash suggests Jota's car suffered a burst tyre while overtaking. Just ten days before his death on the 28th of June, Jota got married to his long term partner of 13 years, Rute Cardoso, who is also the mother of his three children. "I'm devastated. Devastated. It's like unless you are part of the football family, people probably won't get it, but it's like you knew him. And he was so young. Kids and just can't believe it." Thousands of Liverpool fans have turned out to pay their respects and honour Jota in Anfield, leaving cards and flowers in his memory. Jota helped Liverpool win the Premier League last season and also won the F-A Cup and League Cup with the team. In a statement, Liverpool Football Club said they're devastated by the death of Jota and his brother. Former Manager Jurgen Klopp says he's heartbroken. On an Instagram post, he wrote: "This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose! But I can't see it." The Portuguese Football Federation has also paid tribute to the brothers, saying their deaths are an irreparable loss for Portuguese football. Pedro Proença is the Portuguese Football Federation President. "I'd like to say that Portuguese football is absolutely devastated today. We're all in mourning; the (Portuguese) Football Federation, this generation of players, over everything surrounding Diogo today, and if I may, Andre too. Diogo was what we'd all like to be. He was a benchmark for Portuguese soccer. He was a talent of his generation." Portugal's Prime Minister Luís Montenegro echoed similar sentiments, saying the deaths were "unexpected and tragic". Jota, who yielded five major honours for his club and country was meant to return to Liverpool next week for the start of pre-season training. The highly skilled player was nicknamed 'Jota The Slotter' by his Liverpool fans. "The way he played football with a smile on his face all the time. He was the epitome of enjoying what you do. Every time he went out on the pitch he gave his all. You don't know these people personally, but when you do lose somebody in this fashion, it's devastating. It's going to affect everyone. It's like losing someone really, really close to you." In a 2021 interview with BBC Sport, he spoke about paying to play football when he was 16. "It's hard because firstly I wasn't paying, my parents were. That was I remember the hardest thing for me because I could see their struggle to get the money in the club and I think that caused me the debt that I could never pay them back. Obviously I try to do that and I just remember that was one of my things to keep going and to never give up because I trusted myself but obviously back then I never thought that this was possible." His career began at Gondomar, which is a small club in the Portuguese city of Porto. Anselmo Serra is the Gondomar SC Director. "He never forgot his roots, nor his friends, because he had a group of friends who were with him in the training here in Gondomar and who he even invited from time to time to go and watch Liverpool games in England. And they were like a group of friends that he never forgot over the years and that, therefore, proves the humility of the person that he is (was)." Jota had previously played for Pacos de Ferreira, Atletico Madrid, Porto and Wolves - before joining Liverpool in 2020. His final match was for Portugal in their UEFA Nations League final win against Spain on the 8th of June, winning 5-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in regular and extra time. In a social media post, Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo said Jota's death "doesn't make sense", as he goes on to send his condolences to Jota's family. In the 2021 BBC Sport interview, this was Jota's advice to 16-year-old's potentially wanting to be a professional like him. "Mainly not to give up, I think even when we are - like I was playing in very low divisions, not just me they can find loads of examples is always possible to reach the top I think, and never give up is the main idea." Former Liverpool player. and now football analyst for Sky Sports. Jamie Carragher says off the pitch, Jota was known as someone with a great sense of humility, and revered as a family man. "He came across as probably not the typical way that maybe some people portray a Premier League footballer as he seems very quiet, very humble, real family man. And went about his business, did his business on the pitch very quiet and humble off the pitch, and just seemed like a really great guy off the pitch, but at the moment it's not really about that."
