Liverpudlian comic John Bishop and a number of familiar faces from the world of showbiz have paid tribute to Liverpool forward Diogo Jota following his death at the age of 28.
The Portuguese player died following a car accident in Spain’s Zamora province. He was travelling with his 26-year-old brother Andre, also a professional footballer from Penafiel, when the fatal crash occurred.
The crash took place at kilometre 65 of the A-52 highway, near the Zamoran region of Sanabria. The vehicle carrying both brothers veered off the road before catching fire, resulting in the fatal accident.
According to witnesses who contacted emergency services, the car became engulfed in flames. The fire subsequently spread to nearby vegetation in the surrounding area.
Spanish news agency EFE reported the incident, with multiple outlets confirming the details of the tragic accident that occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning.
The accident has sent shockwaves through the football world, with fans and the sporting community beginning to mourn the loss of the talented forward who had become a key player for both club and country.
Liverpool FC released a statement following the devastating news. “Liverpool Football Club are devastated by the tragic passing of Diogo Jota,” the statement began.
“The club have been informed the 28-year-old has passed away following a road traffic accident in Spain along with his brother, Andre. 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.”
Elsewhere, comedian Bishop took to Instagram to pay tribute, writing: “Heartbreaking news about Diogo Jota and his brother, André Silva. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family,” followed by a heartbroken emoji.
The Radford family from Channel 5’s 22 Kids and Counting similarly took to the social media site and penned: “Absolutely heartbreaking news,” followed by a crying emoji.
Meanwhile, Piers Morgan commented: “Desperately sad reports coming out of Spain that Liverpool and Portugal star Diogo Jota, 28, has died, along with his brother, in a car accident in Zamora. He only got married 2 weeks ago. Heart-breaking,” again, followed by a heartbroken emoji.
TV presenter Kirsty Gallacher shared a link to a news article about Jota’s death, alongside a tearful emoji.
Several of Jota’s teammates, past and present, have also issued statements expressing their devastation at the loss of the star.
Jota had married his partner Rute Cardoso in Porto just two weeks before the fatal accident, on June 22. The couple have three children together.
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The newlyweds had celebrated their wedding in Portugal’s second-largest city before Jota’s untimely death in the Spanish road accident.
Jota joined Liverpool in 2020 from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £44.7 million. During his time at Anfield, he made 182 appearances for the Reds, netting 65 goals and providing 26 assists.
The Portuguese international helped Liverpool secure three major trophies: a Premier League title, an FA Cup, and a League Cup. In the recently concluded 2024-25 Premier League season, Jota registered six goals and three assists across 26 appearances as Liverpool celebrated their 20th league title in May.
Before his Liverpool career, Jota had a brief stint at Atlético Madrid after joining from Paços de Ferreira in 2016 for €7 million, though he never made an official debut for the Spanish club.