Rute Cardoso, the widow of the late Diogo Jota, has written a deeply moving letter to Scotland captain Andrew Robertson, urging him to carry her husband's dream with him when he takes to the pitch at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Jota, who earned 49 caps for Portugal, died aged 28 in a car crash last July, months after helping his country secure World Cup qualification. He had missed the 2022 tournament through a calf injury and never got the chance to play at the finals he had dreamed of.

Robertson had spoken openly about his friend following Scotland's own qualification in November, saying: "I couldn't get my mate Diogo Jota out of my head today. We spoke so much about going to the World Cup because he missed the last one with Portugal and I did with Scotland. I know he'll be smiling over me today."

A letter from the heart

Published by FIFA, Cardoso's letter — addressed directly to Robertson — offered a window into the bond the two players shared. "Diogo often spoke of you," she wrote. "Of the friendship you built, the battles you fought together, the challenges, the laughter, the conversations about football... and about dreams."

"The World Cup was one of those dreams, a dream that the two of you nurtured, side by side, with the same passion with which you took to the pitch," Cardoso continued.

She told Robertson that, by qualifying, he had ensured Jota's dream would live on. "When you step on to the pitch, I know it won't just be you walking out. Diogo will be with you in your thoughts, in your steps, in your heart."

Cardoso closed her letter with a personal message: "Thank you for not forgetting him. Thank you for taking him with you. Thank you for turning the pain of loss into strength and into something so beautiful. He would be, and is, incredibly proud of you. Cherish that dream, Andy. Live it for yourself and for him."

Robertson's response

Robertson, who was filmed by FIFA reading the letter aloud, said the words would stay with him for a "very long time." He added: "I'll carry him in my heart and I know he'll be with me come the first game, come the second game, come the third game and hopefully beyond that."

"I'm not only just playing for me. I'm playing for both of us," he said.

Robertson, who joined Tottenham Hotspur after leaving Liverpool at the end of last season, will lead Scotland into their first World Cup since 1998. Playing in Group C, Scotland face Haiti on Sunday, Morocco on 19 June, and Brazil on 24 June. The tournament runs from 11 June to 19 July.