Who was Diogo Jota, Portugal No. 21 who the team is honoring at World Cup?
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Who was Diogo Jota, Portugal No. 21 who the team is honoring at World Cup?
Charles Curtis, For The Win
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1 min read
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If you've been following Portugal at the 2026 World Cup, you may have seen Cristiano Ronaldo and the rest of the team honoring No. 21 with a jersey after a win (see below). What's that all about? We have an answer.
It's a tribute to the late Diego Jota. In 2025, theLiverpool soccer player died in a car crashalong with his brother Andre Silva. Jota was 28 and Silva was 25. Jota wore No. 21, and in tribute, Portugal midfielder Ruben Neves wore the number for the World Cup.
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"Sometimes you need to hold on to something to give you that extra bit of strength," Neves said,via USA TODAY Sports. "[Jota's memory] will be one of the things that can give us that extra strength at certain moments and help us get where we want to go."
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Dan Mullan, Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal and teammates celebrate with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Mattia Ozbot, Getty Images)
July 2, 2026; Toronto, Canada; Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after the match as he wears the shirt of Diogo Jota ahead of the one year anniversary of his passing.
(Mike Segar, REUTERS)
July 2, 2026; Toronto, Canada; Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and teammates pose with a shirt in memory of former player Diogo Jota ahead of the one year anniversary of his death, as Portugal qualify for the Round of 16 stage of the World Cup.
(Jeenah Moon, REUTERS)
1/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Dan Mullan, Getty Images)
1/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Dan Mullan, Getty Images)
2/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
3/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
4/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
5/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal celebrates with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Buda Mendes, Getty Images)
6/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JULY 02: Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Portugal and teammates celebrate with a shirt in commemoration of late teammate Diogo Jota after the 2-1 win during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia at Toronto Stadium on July 02, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario.
(Mattia Ozbot, Getty Images)
7/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
July 2, 2026; Toronto, Canada; Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after the match as he wears the shirt of Diogo Jota ahead of the one year anniversary of his passing.
(Mike Segar, REUTERS)
8/8
See Cristiano Ronaldo's beautiful Diogo Jota tribute after Portugal World Cup win
July 2, 2026; Toronto, Canada; Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and teammates pose with a shirt in memory of former player Diogo Jota ahead of the one year anniversary of his death, as Portugal qualify for the Round of 16 stage of the World Cup.
(Jeenah Moon, REUTERS)
What happened to Diego Jota with his cause of death?
Jota and Silva had a tire that blew out on their yellow Lamborghini. The vehicle caught fire. They were found dead.
