Family and friends of Liverpool striker Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva gathered Friday at a church where their bodies were taken for a wake and funeral, after the Portuguese footballers died in a car crash in Spain.

Some hugged and cried before entering the Chapel of the Resurrection of Saint Cosme, where the brothers’ funeral is scheduled to take place on Saturday.

Jota, 28, and his 25-year-old brother were found dead near Zamora, in northwest Spain, after the Lamborghini they were traveling in crashed on an isolated stretch of highway shortly after midnight on Thursday and burst into flames.

Their bodies were repatriated to Portugal after being identified by the family, Spanish government officials said.

A tribute to Diogo Jota by former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson at Anfield Stadium, July 4, 2025. AP Photo

Jota and his parents live in Gondomar, where he began his playing career as a child. Gondomar is a working-class town near Porto, where Jota was born.

Jota’s death came two weeks after he married his longtime partner, Rute Cardoso, during the holidays following a long season in which he helped Liverpool win the Premier League. The couple had three children, the youngest of whom was born last year.

Spanish police are investigating the cause of the accident, which did not involve another vehicle, they said.

His brother Silva played for the Portuguese club Penafiel in the lower divisions.

Condolences poured in from Portuguese officials and the football world as news of the accident spread.

Liverpool’s Diogo Jota celebrates scoring a goal during the Premier League match at Carrow Road in Norwich, August 14, 2021. AP Photo

Liverpool fans laid wreaths and wore team scarves outside Anfield Stadium as a moment of silence was observed before Portugal’s Women’s European Championship match against Spain in Switzerland.

The loss was felt hard in his hometown, especially at his first football club, where Jota began playing at age nine.

“He never forgot his roots or his friends, because he had a group of friends who were with him at training here in Gondomar and whom he even invited from time to time to go watch Liverpool games in England,” said Gondomar SC director Anselmo Serra.

“They were like a group of friends that I never forgot over the years.”