Liverpool and Portugal hero Diogo Jota, who tragically died in July 2025, would have celebrated his first wedding anniversary with wife Rute Cardoso this week
Rute Cardoso and Diogo Jota on their wedding day
Diogo Jota died less than two weeks after marrying Rute Cardoso(Image: INSTAGRAM)
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Diogo Jota's wife Rute Cardoso shared the Liverpool icon's wedding speech to commemorate what would be their first anniversary. Jota - who tragically lost his life in a car crash alongside his brother Andre Silva last July - wed his childhood sweetheart on June 22, 2025.
The couple had been together for more than a decade and had three children at the time of their wedding. They celebrated the joyous occasion surrounded by friends and family, yet it was fewer than two weeks later that the Portuguese star was killed on July 3 in Zamora, Spain.
Exactly a year on from their wedding day, Rute shared a video of her husband's moving speech on social media. The Reds legend said in the footage: "Where the future takes us, maybe there's someone here who knows better than I do. But the truth is, I don't know and it doesn't really matter to me as long as I'm with you. I love you forever, my 'Branquinha'."
The legacy of Jota has endured as the first anniversary of his devastating passing draws near. His Portugal team-mates are away at the World Cup 2026, where they have been keeping his memory alive.
Roberto Martinez's squad are sporting a commemorative wristband throughout the tournament bearing every name in the 26-man roster, alongside Jota's. The wristbands were presented to the Portugal squad by the country's Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro.
Speaking ahead of their 1-1 opening match against DR Congo, Paris Saint-Germain and Portugal midfielder Vitinha said: "Basically, the story of the wristband is, when we went to meet with the Prime Minister, he offered us this wristband.
"They made sure that it was a wristband that we could wear on the pitch. It has all the specifics for us to be able to enter the pitch with it, with the name of all the players plus the special name of Diogo Jota.
"He let us choose if we wanted to use it or not, how (we use it), during the day or during the match. We received it with a lot of affection and we chose to use it."
Rute Cardoso looks at tributes to Diogo Jota
Tributes were paid to Jota after his death at the age of 28(Image: PETER POWELL/EPA/Shutterstock)
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Portugal drew their opener 1-1, with Joao Neves' goal cancelled out by Yoane Wissa's header on the stroke of half-time. Martinez's team take on Uzbekistan in their second group game on Tuesday.
Before the first game, midfielder Bruno Fernandes spoke about Jota's lasting impact. "Everyone has spoken about him. It will always be good words about him," Manchester United captain Fernandes said.
"He was a great team-mate, very down to earth and a great person for the country. He's still part of our group - and always will be. So will his brother be, too. He will also be in our memories."
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