Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota, 28, and his brother Andre Felipe, 26 and who plays for Penafiel football club in Portugal, died early Thursday morning in a traffic accident in Zamora, Spain. The information was confirmed by the Spanish Civil Guard. Jota was traveling with his brother on the A52 highway through the municipality of Cernadilla overnight. As per local media, at around 12:30am on Wednesday, after an initial investigation, it is believed that the Lamborghini they were traveling in may have suffered a tire burst while trying to overtake. This caused the car to go off road, which proved fatal. The car ended up in flames, and the fire proved fatal for both the Portuguese footballers.The Spanish Civil Guard, the Zamora Provincial Council Fire Department, and an Emergency Medical Unit reported to the scene, along with medical personnel, but they were unable to bring them to life.The Liverpool player was traveling with his brother just days after getting married to his partner, Rute Cardoso, on June 22. Jota and Cardoso had been together since 2012. The footballer leaves behind three children.Jota joined Liverpool in 2020 from Wolverhampton for €44.7 million. Since then, he has played 182 games for the Merseyside club, scoring 65 goals and providing 26 assists. During that time, he won three titles with the Reds: a Premier League title (2024-25), an FA Cup title (2021-22), and a League Cup title (2021-22).He also had a brief spell in Spain with Atletico Madrid. The Rojiblancos had signed him from Paços Ferreira in 2016 for €7 million. He scored during a friendly game but was not picked up for the senior team. That summer, he went on loan to Porto. He then left, also on loan, to Wolverhampton before making that move permanent in 2018 for 14 million.Portugal PM, president of football association express condolences
File photo of Portugal’s Diogo Jota during a friendly against Finland. (Getty Images)
Luís Montenegro, Portugal’s Prime Minister, wrote on social media: “The news of the death of Diogo Jota, an athlete who greatly honored Portugal’s name, and his brother, is unexpected and tragic. I extend my deepest condolences to their family. It is a sad day for football and for national and international sports.”Pedro Proença, the president of the Portuguese football asociation, wrote on social media: “The Portuguese football federation and the entire Portuguese football community are completely devastated by the death of Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva, this morning in Spain. Much more than a fantastic player, who played almost 50 matches for the national A team, Diogo Jota was an extraordinary person, respected by all his teammates and opponents, someone with an infectious joy and a reference in the community itself.“On my behalf, and on behalf of the Portuguese Football Federation, I express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Diogo and André Silva, as well as to Liverpool FC and FC Penafiel, the clubs where the players played respectively.“The Portuguese football; federation has already asked Uefa for a minute’s silence this Thursday, before our team’s match against Spain in the Women’s European Championship. We have lost two champions. The passing of Diogo and André Silva represents irreparable losses for Portuguese football and we will do everything we can to honour their legacy every day.”
