The Portugal national team has introduced a poignant way to remember former Liverpool and Selecao forward Jota, who tragically passed away in a car accident last year. The squad will wear commemorative wristbands throughout their World Cup campaign, starting with their Group K opening fixture against DR Congo next week. The accessory was a personal gift from Portugal’s Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro, following a meeting with the team before they departed for the tournament.
Midfielder Vitinha explained the significance of the bands, revealing they have been designed specifically to meet FIFA’s on-pitch regulations. “Basically, the story of the wristband is, when we went to meet with the Prime Minister, he offered us this wristband,” the Paris Saint-Germain star told reporters.
“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.”
