Ronaldo Calls for Lifetime Bans Over Jota Chants

Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, has demanded lifetime bans for fans who chanted the name of the late Diogo Jota towards his international teammate Ruben Neves during a match on Saturday. Jota, who passed away at the age of 28 in July last year, was a close friend of Neves, having played together at Wolverhampton Wanderers and for the Portugal national team.

The incident occurred before Al-Hilal's 6-0 victory over Al-Taawoun, where supporters targeted Neves by repeatedly shouting “Jota” at him. Ronaldo stated on social media that the league must take action against such fan behavior, emphasizing that limits must be set in football.

Neves, who now wears the number 21 shirt for Portugal in Jota’s memory and has a tattoo of them together, sarcastically applauded the fans and later remarked, “I just hope they don’t go to pray later after what they did.” Jota died alongside his brother Andre Silva in a crash in Zamora, Spain.