A website claiming to represent the Diogo Jota Foundation has been taken offline after reportedly raising nearly £50,000 in donations, amid allegations it had no connection to the late Liverpool forward’s family or the club.
Portuguese international Diogo Jota and his brother tragically died in a car accident in July, just days after the striker married his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso.
Only three days after his passing, the domain diogojotafoundation.org appeared online, appealing for public donations. By 21 August, it claimed to have collected £47,715.
Investigations, however, revealed that neither Liverpool FC nor Jota’s family had any affiliation with the platform. The club confirmed that both it and the family were unaware of the foundation’s existence, while the UK Charity Commission stated that no registration had been filed for such an organisation.
The website featured logos of Liverpool FC, UNICEF, Allianz, and the Portuguese Platform of Development NGOs. At least three of these organisations, however, denied any involvement with the so-called foundation.
As of the morning of 22 August, the website was deactivated, redirecting visitors to a domain hosting service instead.
Liverpool FC has already launched an official tribute to Jota through the LFC Foundation. In July, the club announced plans to establish a grassroots football programme bearing his name. Fans are also encouraged to honour the late striker by purchasing official jerseys with “Diogo J. 20” on the back, with all profits directed to the foundation.