Real Madrid have been forced to issue an apology to Elche and their player Andre da Silva after using a picture of the forward during a tribute to the late Liverpool star Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva.
The brothers were both killed in a road traffic accident in July in Zamora, Spain this summer, aged just 28 and 26 respectively. Tributes flooded in from footballers and fans around the world in the aftermath of their passing, honouring their memory in the midst of tragedy.
Their deaths are still felt in the wider football community months afterwards, with Andy Robertson dedicating Scotland's 2026 World Cup qualification to his friend and former teammate. Real Madrid paid tribute to Jota ahead of their Champions League match against Liverpool in November, as former teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold, Xabi Alonso, Dean Huijsen and Emilio Butragueno lay floral memorials and messages.
Madrid Apologise For Jota Tribute Mistake
General view during a minutes silence in tribute to Liverpool's Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva
Real Madrid have been forced to issue a statement after using Elche's Andre da Silva in a tribute video to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva. Credit: REUTERS/Jeenah Moon.
Ahead of a club assembly on Sunday, Real also produced an obituary video to celebrate the lives of Jota and his brother, along with others who had passed away in 2025. Among those shown in the video were Leo Beenhakker, Jose Manuel Ochotorena, Mario Vargas Llosa, Giorgio Armani, Pope Francisco and former Barcelona doctor Carles Minarro.
However, the club made a mistake when putting the footage together, accidentally using an image of Elche forward Da Silva instead of Jota's brother Andre. They have since issued a statement on social media, apologising for the error.
"Real Madrid CF apologizes to Elche CF and its player André da Silva for mistakenly including his image in the obituary of an institutional video instead of that of André Silva, brother of Diogo Jota, a Liverpool player. We regret what happened."
That sentiment was echoed by club president Florentino Perez, who apologised for the error in person at the event. He said: "There was a mistake in the remembrance of Diogo Jota, and the image of Andre da Silva was shown instead of (Jota’s) brother Andre Silva.
"A human error, for which I want to apologise sincerely."
Madrid's mistake comes ahead of their match against Elche on Sunday, with Da Silva potentially leading the line against Los Blancos at the Estadio Martínez Valero. A 53-cap international for Portugal, the 30-year-old has played for AC Milan, Porto, Sevilla and Real Sociedad during his career, scoring 157 goals across 464 appearances, along with 19 goals for his national side.
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