Saudi Pro League bans club over ‘Jota’ chants, after Ronaldo demands action

The Saudi Pro League has banned Al-Taawoun club from playing two home matches behind closed doors after supporters chanted about Ruben Neves' late friend and former teammate Diogo Jota. The club was also fined 100,000 Saudi Riyals (£20,000) for the incident. The chanting supporters repeatedly shouted "Jota" during the match between Al-Hilal and Al-Taawoun, which Al-Hilal won 6-0.

Jota, a Liverpool and Portugal forward, died in a car crash in July last year at the age of 28. Neves, who wears the number 21 shirt for Portugal in Jota's memory and has a tattoo of the two friends embracing, condemned the supporters' behavior. Neves expressed hope that the chanting fans would not attend religious services after their disrespectful actions.

Cristiano Ronaldo, a teammate of Jota in the international arena, strongly condemned the fans and called for lifetime bans to be issued to the offenders. The Saudi Pro League's decision to impose the stadium closures and financial penalty is seen as a strong message against such disrespectful behavior at sports events.