American Small Businesses Are Desperate for Foreign Workers

Published

1 year ago

June 2, 2024

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Brett Brownlee’s entrepreneurial streak started simply: as a kid, for kid reasons, with his brother. “Growing up, he and I just used to push mowers around our parents’ subdivision to try to save up money to buy basketball shoes,” he says. The venture looks a bit different these days. Brownlee makes a living running Archway Lawn Care in the St. Louis area. The company brings in millions of dollars in revenue each year and employs around 50 people during peak season.

That isn’t to say things have always been easy. Archway’s staffing has been a bit of a revolving door, with many employees working there for a year or less. “At times like now where it seems everyone’s hiring,” says Brownlee, “we don’t get very many, if any, applicants at all.”

To bridge the labor gap, Archway relies on temporary seasonal workers from abroad. In 2023, it employed 29 of them. But that visa program is so dysfunctional, Brownlee says, that it puts him on a “rollercoaster of emotions every year.” Small business owners who use the program have to deal with workers arriving too late in the season, workers leaving too early, or even receiving no workers at all.

There’s “no certainty whatsoever” for employers, he continues. “We rack our brain every day on why we keep doing it because it’s frustrating, to say the least.”

Archway is one of many American small businesses that can’t find enough willing native-born workers and needs foreign laborers to get the job done. The federal government doesn’t make it easy for them, artificially capping the number of seasonal workers who can come to the U.S. each year. That barrier means it’s often easier for workers to enter the country and gain employment illegally.

COVID-era government policies have created lingering problems for American small businesses. Lockdowns caused abnormally high numbers of businesses to close for good. To make matters worse, in June 2020 former President Donald Trump went so far as tobanthe temporary seasonal workers that businesses like Archway need,sayingthey “present a risk to the U.S. labor market.” As of February, there were 9.5 million job openings in the U.S. but only 6.5 million unemployed workers,perthe U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Labor shortages and policies that keep out foreign workers are connected. But America’s main pathway for temporary seasonal workers is broken in ways that predate the Trump administration and the pandemic, and in ways that kneecap the businesses that provide beloved goods and services. FromMaryland crabberstoColorado ski resorts, American businesses depend on a regular stream of helpers from abroad. Yet the businesses that want to do things “the right way” often realize that means going without workers, forgoing growth opportunities, and failing to reach their potential. ‘Half Your Team Is Injured’

The old saying that immigrantsworkthejobsthat Americans don’t want is generally truebut it’s especially true in the context of seasonal employment. “Finding labor to work [the] seasonality of our business has been challenging,” says Christian Sain, director of golf and grounds management for the Richmond-based Country Club of Virginia. “This is where the H-2B program has been something that fits our industry well, fits our golf course well.”

The H-2B visa is a pathway that exists to bring temporary, nonimmigrant, nonagricultural workers to American businesses. The landscaping industryemploysthe most H-2B workers, but seasonal laborers also find work at carnivals and amusement parks, fisheries, restaurants, resorts, and more. Most H-2B workers come from Latin America, but Jamaica, the Philippines, South Africa, Serbia, and Ukraine alsosentthousands of laborers in FY 2022. Their contributions keep outdoor spaces beautiful, ensure that popular seasonal institutions operate smoothly, and allow small businesses to keep providing the goods and services that consumers rely on.

Small business job openings have finally fallen to pre-pandemic levels, according to a March National Federation of Independent Business surveybut 86 percent of small business owners “hiring or trying to hire” reported “few or no qualified” applicants nonetheless. There were more than a million open jobs in construction and manufacturing and over 1.1 million open jobs in leisure and hospitality as of February,accordingto the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The H-2B visa program ideally could help solve these problems. But in its current form, it can’t reliably get willing workers to employers when they’re needed and it can’t respond to the forces of supply and demand. It’s also horribly complex,boastingover 175 rules that regulate everything from recruitment to wages.

The governmentissuesH-2B visas in two rounds: one starting in October and the other in April. “About 150 days before the job start date,”wroteDavid J. Bier, director of immigration studies at the Cato Institute, in a 2021 Cato paper, an employer must “submit a prevailing wage determination” to the Department of Labor. (This is the minimum wage for H-2B workers, and as of 2020, the hourlyaveragewas $14.09.) American employers must file a temporary labor certification, which “determine[s] whether or not there are sufficient qualified U.S. workers who will be available and that any employment of H-2B workers will not ‘adversely affect’ the wages and working conditions of similarly employed American workers,” Bier continued. Employers are placed into groups based on their filing order.

That order has a huge impact on when a business receives its workersand whether it gets them at all. Lucky filers land in Group A, which the Department of Labor adjudicates first. This year, the Country Club of Virginia is in Group Fthesecond-to-lastgroupwhich means “we have no chance of getting our workers at all,” says Sain. “Right now, we’re just falling behind because we don’t have our workers….It’s like being on a team and half your team is injured.”

Workers often arrive too late in the season, explains Andrew Bray, senior vice president of government relations and membership at the National Association of Landscape Professionals. “That’s always what the issue is,” says Bray. Landscaping companies are “signing these contracts sometimes with liquidated damages provisions and they’re not sure if they’re even going to have their workers.”

“We have 29 H-2B guys that are all getting ready to go home in the next three weeks or so,” per the visa program’s rules, Brownlee said in early November. “But I have probably six weeks’ to eight weeks’ worth of work left still to do that’s already been sold with my labor here….Now I have to go back to my customers and tell them, ‘Sorry, our labor force had to go home, and I can’t find enough guys locally, and now we have to wait until spring.'”

Even though 2023 was a record year for Archway and the business got all the H-2B workers it applied for, Brownlee says, “We’re not going to go out and buy a bunch of new equipment or new trucks or anything like that for next year, because we don’t know if we’re going to get these same guys back next year or not.” That’s money that won’t reach other businesses and keep the economy moving.

The government knows there’s huge demand for the program. In 2022, the Department of Laborapprovedabout 210,000 petitions by employers for H-2B workers, Bray says. “But we have this cap that doesn’t reflect the actual demand.” Only 66,000 H-2B visas aregrantedevery yeara limit that hasn’t changed since it wasestablishedin 1990. In other words, the government acknowledges a need for H-2B visas that is far greater than the number of visas that regulations allow to be issued each year.

Because the visas are distributed via a randomized lottery, many employers who apply for workers simply lose out. The lottery “selects entire petitionswhich include all the workers that an individual employer is seekingrather than selecting individual beneficiaries from each petition,” wrote Bier, so “employers either receive all their workers or none.”

On top of that, the program is very expensive for the businesses that se it. The Seasonal Employment Alliance, an H-2B advocacy group,estimatedthat employers spend between $1,500 and $3,000 for each H-2B worker they bring in. Administrative costs tend toaddan extra $1 to $3 to the hourly wage employers are mandated to pay H-2B workers, “bringing the real cost of employing H-2B workers well above what it would cost to hire US workers.”

Thanks to all these mandates and regulations, it would be far easier for a small business to hire undocumented immigrants than laborers on work visas. “I’ve had more illegal immigrants or people without papers try to get jobs with us than any local help,” says Brownlee. “Having to turn them away, it’s frustrating, because we’ve spent over a decade using the H-2B program, doing everything in our power to keep a legal work force, and I’ve got people that are willing to work that don’t have papers and I have to tell them ‘no.'”

“It kind of puts companies like us between a rock and a hard spot of trying to keep a legal work force and stay competitive,” he adds. ‘A Risk to the U.S. Labor Market’

One of the most visible roadblocks to a better visa pathway consists of politicians who otherwise claim to champion the interests of small businesses and American workers.

As an ostensibly COVID-related measure in April 2020, Trumpissuedan executive order suspending green cards for certain immigrants whose entry he argued would be economically “detrimental to the interests of the United States.” At the time, due in part tooppositionfrom business groups, he didn’ttouchtemporary visas for seasonal workers, farm workers, and other foreigners.

But a month later, with the U.S. economy still in shambles, Sens. Tom Cotton (RArk.), Ted Cruz (RTexas), Josh Hawley (RMo.), and Chuck Grassley (RIowa)urgedTrump to suspend many of those visas for up to a year “or until unemployment has returned to normal levels.” The country’s “guest worker programs,” including the H-2B visa, “remain a serious threat to the U.S. labor market’s recovery,” argued the senators. “There is no reason why” young people “should not have access to seasonal, nonagricultural work…before those positions are given to imported foreign labor under the H-2B program,” they continued.

Trump granted their wish in anexecutive orderone month later. A Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security review of nonimmigrant visa programs, Trump’s order explained, found that “the present admission of workers within several…categories also poses a risk of displacing and disadvantaging United States workers during the current recovery.” He barred the entry of certain nonimmigrant workersincluding H-2B visa holdersthrough the end of 2020. Trump would laterextendthe order, with President Joe Biden rescinding it in February 2021. (Trump, it should be said, hasemployedhundreds of H-2B workers at his golf clubs and resorts over the years.)

Opponents of these work visa programs often hold the common yet mistaken view that foreign workers displace American ones. But after Trump banned H-2B workers, Biernotedthat “government data show that almost no U.S. workers applied for H-2B jobs, despite the spike in unemployment.” Brownlee explains that the extra revenue Archway gets thanks to its H-2B workers “allows us to pay [American workers] more to be supervisors and managers for these guys who are coming in on these seasonal visas.”

“It’s created opportunities for guys internally here that started with us literally 10 years ago making 10 bucks an hour that are now making anywhere from $5070,000 a year,” he adds.

“Each H-2B worker actually supports 4.6 U.S. jobs,” says Bray. “That means a company that can hire more workers to make sure they can fulfill the positions within their own organization, that company can grow.”

The issues with H-2B visas and other nonimmigrant work programs don’t always come up in the political battles. They’re hidden within layers of the antiquated U.S. immigration system and all its artificial caps and bureaucratic bloat. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a Democratic administration or a Republican administration,” Brownlee says. “It’s been the same way for probably six or seven of the last 10 years.”

By design, the H-2B visaand many other work visas, temporary or notis not responsive to market forces. Visa caps all but guarantee that supply won’t match demand. The government also mandates that businesses try to recruit American workers before they can hire H-2B workers. “Even if U.S. workers reject the jobs, the law can still require the positions to go unfilled, thus harming employers and U.S. workers in complementary employment,”wroteBier. Doing away with these barriers would mean removing layers of protectionism that stifle the U.S. economy.

Issuing more temporary work visas could also help reduce the number of unauthorized crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border. “The vast increase in the number of H-2 guest worker visas issued to Mexicans can explain a large percentage of the decrease in Mexican illegal immigrants,”wrotethe Cato Institute’s Alex Nowrasteh and Andrew C. Forrester in 2019. “From 20002018, a 1 percent increase in the number of H-2 visas for Mexicans is associated with a 1.04 percent decline in the number of Mexicans apprehended on average.”

Theyconcludedthat it would be “simpler and cheaper to issue more H-2 visas than to hire more Border Patrol agents” to address unauthorized immigration. Instead, U.S. officials have chosen a path that encourages more chaos at the border and punishes Americans whose businesses can’t survive without foreign workers. ‘The Short End of the Stick’

Small businesses have seen relief here and there, but not the solutions they say they need.

“There’s been various increases in the past through one-year policy changes,” says Bray. The Department of Homeland Securityannouncedin early November that it would do just that for FY 2024, releasing over 64,000 supplemental H-2B visas. But businesses that use the program are still waiting on a lasting solution, Bray notes: “We need a more permanent fix to the cap so it actually reflects demand.”

One fix that Brownlee wants is a returning worker exemptionan exemption to the annual cap for workers previously employed under the H-2B program. “Congress previously passed such an exemption for fiscal years 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2016,”wroteBloomberg’s Andrew Kreighbaum. Lawmakers tried to pass a returning worker measure in a Department of Homeland Security funding bill in September 2023, Kreighbaumreportedat the timebut the provision was ultimately stripped from the final bill.

“It feels like every year we get all these rumors that there’s going to be a fix…and then during the spending bill negotiations, something has to get taken out at the eleventh hour and it’s always H-2B, and it’s always the returning worker exemption or the cap stuff,” Brownlee says. “‘We’ve got to keep things status quo, we don’t want to rock the boat.’ We always get left with the short end of the stick.”

H-2B visas bring workers where they’re needed, to the benefit of small businesses and both American and foreign workers. Along with other temporary work visas, they can help reduce the pressure of unauthorized migration along the U.S.-Mexico border. Despite its flaws, the H-2B program is essential for thousands of American businesses, especially small seasonal ones.

By failing to reform the pathway, policy makers are forcing businesses to forgo growth and provide service below their standards. “You feel like you’re pushing the stone up the hill constantly,” says Sain, “but you just never get it to the top.”

Entertainment

Oasis tour: What you need to know – and why Cardiff is the first stop

Published

3 hours ago

July 4, 2025

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Oasis tour: What you need to know - and why Cardiff is the first stop

Oasis are set to kick off their reunion tour in Cardiff this weekend, with thousands expected to descend on the Welsh capital.

The 41-date Oasis Live 25 tour begins in the city on Friday and Saturday, amid warnings for people to plan ahead before they travel.

The Gallagher brothers’ last performance together was in 2009, and the tour sold out within hours of its announcement last August, with fans eager to catch a glimpse of the reunion.

But where is the tour heading – and why was Cardiff chosen as the city where the brothers will perform for the first time together in almost 16 years?

When does the tour start and where is it heading?

After Cardiff, Oasis will go on to perform at Manchester, London, Edinburgh and Dublin on their UK and Ireland leg of the tour.

See below for a full list of tour dates:

Oasis tour dates

Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Wales – Friday 4 July
Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Wales – Saturday 5 July
Heaton Park, Manchester, England – Friday 11 July
Heaton Park, Manchester, England – Saturday 12 July
Heaton Park, Manchester, England – Wednesday 16 July
Heaton Park, Manchester, England – Saturday 19 July
Heaton Park, Manchester, England – Sunday 20 July
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Friday 25 July
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Saturday 26 July
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Wednesday 30 July
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Saturday 2 August
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Sunday 3 August
Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland – Friday 8 August
Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland – Saturday 9 August
Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland – Tuesday 12 August
Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland – Saturday 16 August
Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland – Sunday 17 August
Toronto, Canada – Sunday 24 August
Toronto, Canada – Monday 25 August
Chicago, USA – Thursday 28 August
East Rutherford, USA – Sunday 31 August
East Rutherford, USA – Monday 1 September
Los Angeles, USA – Saturday 6 September
Los Angeles, USA – Sunday 7 September
Mexico City, Mexico – Friday 12 September
Mexico City, Mexico – Saturday 13 September
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Saturday 27 September
Wembley Stadium, London, England – Sunday 28 September
Seoul, South Korea – Tuesday 21 October
Tokyo, Japan – Saturday 25 October
Tokyo, Japan – Sunday 26 October
Melbourne, Australia – Friday 31 October
Melbourne, Australia – Saturday 1 November
Melbourne, Australia – Tuesday 4 November
Sydney, Australia – Friday 7 November
Sydney, Australia – Saturday 8 November
Buenos Aires, Argentina – Saturday 15 November
Buenos Aires, Argentina – Sunday 16 November
Santiago, Chile – Wednesday 19 November
São Paulo, Brazil – Saturday 22 November
São Paulo, Brazil – Sunday 23 November

Why was Cardiff picked as the first stop?

Asked on X in May why Cardiff was chosen as the location for the opening leg, Liam Gallagher said “because Cardiff is the bollox”.

Principality Stadium is a 74,500-seat venue, known as the home of Welsh rugby, which played host to Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift concerts last year.

Businesses in the area are hoping the arrival of Oasis will bring an influx of trade to the city.

Gary Corp, manager of the City Arms, told Sky News that he was expecting the concert would “treble if not quadruple the footfall on the street”.

Meanwhile, Ethan John, events manager at Tiny Rebel, said Oasis choosing Cardiff to kick off their tour was “surreal” and that previous events such as Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour had a “massive impact” on footfall.

What travel advice is there in Cardiff?

Train operators say trains will be busy and people should allow plenty of time for their journey home.

Georgie Wills, from Transport for Wales, said the company was “thrilled to welcome thousands to Cardiff this summer”.

“Look out for our queuing systems and travel tips – and let’s make it a safe and smooth experience for everyone,” she added.

Cardiff Council has confirmed that roads around the stadium will close from 12pm until 12am on both Friday and Saturday.

The road closures come into force three hours earlier than is planned for upcoming Stereophonics, Kendrick Lamar and Catfish and the Bottlemen concerts later this summer.

The Cardiff Bus Interchange will close at 3pm and Cardiff Queen Street railway station will close at 10pm (apart from accessible travel or journeys to Cardiff Bay).

What time does the show start and who are the support acts?

Principality Stadium’s doors open at 5pm on both Friday and Saturday.

The band will be supported by indie rock band Cast and Richard Ashcroft (who formed alternative rock band the Verve) in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh and Dublin.

Cast start their Cardiff set at 6pm, followed by Richard Ashcroft at 7pm.

Oasis will take to the stage at 8.15pm, and should finish by 10.30pm.

American rock band Cage the Elephant will support Oasis in Canada, Mexico and at the Chicago gig.

They will be joined again by Cast for the East Rutherford and Pasadena dates.

Australian indie rock band Ball Park Music will support in Australia.

Are tickets still available for the shows?

The tour is sold out, but the band has said it is possible some additional tickets may be released.

In an Instagram post on 25 June, the band advised members of Oasismynet to “keep an eye” on their inbox.

The final releases would come “over the coming days” once production was “fine tuned”, the band said.

What’s the weather going to be like?

Cardiff is set to be cloudy with sunny intervals on Friday afternoon, with highs of 21C and lows of 15C.

On Saturday, however, it will be slightly cooler with light rain during the afternoon, before clearing up in the evening.

Entertainment

Oasis reunion: It felt like it might never happen – but the Gallagher brothers are finally back

Published

3 hours ago

July 4, 2025

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Oasis reunion: It felt like it might never happen - but the Gallagher brothers are finally back

Listening to Noel Gallagher over the years, for a long time it didn’t feel like this was part of the masterplan.

He has spoken several times of the difficult decision he made to quit Oasis in 2009. The band was his life and the choice not made lightly, but ending things then was the best thing for everyone, he told Sky Arts a few years ago. The fact they didn’t continue was a big part of the reason they are now “up there with all the greats”.

The older Gallagher brother was well aware that the years apart – the brothers’ often funny but frustrating feud, the unanswered question of whether they would ever bury the hatchet and the hope that maybe, one day, it might just happen – all amplified their legend.

Rumours have come and gone over the years, propelled in no small part by messages from Liam Gallagher on social media. He often teased, but never made any secret of wanting to bring Oasis back. The sticking point seemed to be Noel.

But in 2022, Liam played gigs at Knebworth – the site of Oasis’s most famous, history-making gigs. Last year, he got in early to mark the anniversary of their debut album Definitely Maybe with his own solo tour, no sign of the man who wrote the songs.

Noel created the music; Liam brings it snarlingly, viscerally alive. Him doing those shows alone felt like it could be a death knell for a reunion. When asked about Liam by a fan during one of his shows with his current band, the High Flying Birds, last summer, Noel reportedly said his younger brother should be “thankful for my genius” and told the crowd: “Just remember who wrote all the f***ing songs.”

‘They hadn’t spoken in goodness knows how long’

Even last year’s new artwork for Definitely Maybe (pictured above), released for the 30th anniversary, showed a reworking of that famous album cover – shot at guitarist Bonehead’s house in Manchester – this time with the band members absent from the room. With no Liam on the floorboards, no Noel staring up at the spinning globe, it felt like a statement: Oasis really had left the building.

Designer Brian Cannon, who worked on the artwork for all of Oasis’s early music and now runs the Microdot memorabilia stores, says he was as surprised as anyone by the reunion announcement.

“A lot of people say to me, it’s all a big marketing ploy,” he says, of the brothers’ fall-out. “No, it isn’t, they genuinely hadn’t spoken to each other for goodness knows how long. And Noel’s got a very successful solo career that he’s very content with and doing very well. I didn’t see this coming, I really didn’t.”

Photographer Michael Spencer Jones, who captured the images for all the Oasis albums and singles in the band’s heyday, says the sibling rivalry was always there. “It’s such a major part of the potion that was Oasis.”

But there had been whispers for months, reports from industry insiders saying it was only a matter of time. In January 2023, Noel announced his separation from his now ex-wife Sara MacDonald, who did not get on with Liam, leading to speculation he might become more open to making amends.

Then last year, following reports of shows booked for Wembley, fans once again pointed to teases from Liam on social media – “I never did like that word FORMER” he posted in the days before the announcement – and an interview given by Noel in which he spoke in complimentary terms about his little brother’s voice: “When I’d sing a song it would sound good. When he’d sing it, it would sound great.”

Neither of these things made a reunion a certainty. While Noel may not have liked his brother at times, he never underestimated the shared power their bristling sibling rivalry brought to Oasis. “I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere without him, he wouldn’t have got anywhere without me,” he told journalists at an awards ceremony in 2019.

‘The stars have aligned’ – but statement gives little away

Oasis in their heyday were like no other live band. The shows were electrifying, the energy raw, in an era of optimism and fun in the 1990s that the Gallagher brothers defined. In later years, Noel may not have been a fan of the Cool Britannia tag, but that’s exactly what it was.

So now, will this reunion just be about the gigs? Will there be new music? Could the Gallagher brothers even be friends again?

The reunion statement gave little away. “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised.” Further details said there was “no great revelatory moment”, but rather “the gradual realisation that the time is right” – but the Gallaghers have still not really addressed the small matter of not being on speaking terms for years. We want to know who reached out first? How did they finally come to an agreement? And what did their mum, Peggy, say about her sons finally getting their acts together?

Whatever has happened behind the scenes, the frost has definitely thawed. In 2020, Liam said Oasis had been offered £100m to reform – a claim quickly denied by Noel, who suggested the remark was a publicity move to promote a single. The deal they have signed now is worth millions. But even before the announcement was made, Liam was quick to put anyone suggesting this was only about the money in their place.

“Your attitude stinks” was his reply to anyone questioning their motives. Positivity received a different response: “Your attitude is BIBLICAL.”

You only have to look at the crowds at Liam’s solo shows – full of teenagers, as well as those of us who were there the first time round – to see how the music has filtered through generations. The singer has said several times he would like younger fans to see the full Oasis live experience.

Now, they just have to deliver.

“There’s two schools of thoughts on this and at one time I would have fallen into the latter,” says Cannon. “One being: great, yes, fantastic. The second: no, leave it be, let it lie, it’s gone, you might tarnish the past.

“But. We’re living through strange times in this country at the minute, globally as well. There’s a lot of division, recent events have been quite shocking. [A reunion] will undoubtedly bring a lot of happiness to a lot of people and I’m all in favour of a lot of people being happy. So, yeah, it’s got to be a good thing.”

“There should be an album, I think,” says Spencer Jones. “It would be great if there was more music to come.”

This year also marks the 30th anniversary of their second album, (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? Both Noel and Liam will be well aware of the expectation, how much these shows mean to fans.

Get them wrong, and there’s the potential for the legacy, the memories, to be spoiled.

Get them right, and Oasis live forever – all over again.

World

Liverpool football star Diogo Jota killed in car crash

Published

6 hours ago

July 4, 2025

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Liverpool football star Diogo Jota killed in car crash

Liverpool star Diogo Jota has died in a car crash.

The 28-year-old Portuguese forward died in the accident in the early hours of Thursday morning near Zamora, in northwestern Spain.

His brother, Andre Silva, was also killed in the crash on the Rias Bajas Highway (A-52) near Palacios de Sanabria, heading towards Benavente.

Follow the latest updates following Diogo Jota’s death

Jota and Silva were driving to Santander to catch a ferry back to England ahead of the start of Liverpool’s pre-season training on Monday, CNN Portugal reports.

The news outlet reports that Jota was advised against flying back to England due to recent surgery.

Police said the accident happened at 12.30am when the Lamborghini the pair were travelling in veered off the road.

“A vehicle left the road and everything indicates a tyre burst while overtaking,” the Guardia Civil in Zamora told Sky Sports News in a statement.

“As a result of the accident, the car caught fire and both people were killed. Pending the completion of forensic tests, one of the deceased has been identified as Diogo Jota, a Liverpool FC player, and his brother, Andre Felipe.”

A Spanish government source told the PA news agency that police were investigating the crash as “a possible speeding incident”.

Police added that no other vehicles were involved in the incident.

Pictures of the aftermath of the crash showed debris scattered along the side of the road, including what appeared to be charred parts of the vehicle.

It comes just 10 days after the player married his long-term girlfriend, Rute Cardoso.

He had three children.

The footballer, who played as a striker for Liverpool, began his career in his native Portugal and played at Atletico Madrid in Spain before moving to England.

He joined the Merseyside club from Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2020.

Jota played an important role throughout his five years with the Reds, including scoring six times in Liverpool’s recent Premier League-winning season.

He scored a total of 47 times in 123 matches for the club. He also played 49 times for the Portugal national side, scoring 14 times.

Silva, 25, played for Penafiel, a Portuguese second division club.

Teammates and football legends pay tribute

A statement issued by Liverpool FC said the club was “devastated” by their player’s death.

“The club have been informed the 28-year-old has passed away following a road traffic accident in Spain along with his brother, Andre,” the club said in a statement.

“Liverpool FC will be making no further comment at this time and request the privacy of Diogo and Andre’s family, friends, teammates and club staff is respected as they try to come to terms with an unimaginable loss.

“We will continue to provide them with our full support.”

The Portuguese football federation said it was “utterly devastated by the deaths”.

“Far beyond being an exceptional player, with nearly 50 caps for the national team, Diogo Jota was an extraordinary person, respected by all teammates and opponents, someone with a contagious joy and a reference within his own community.

“We have lost two champions. The passing of Diogo and Andre Silva represents irreparable losses for Portuguese Football, and we will do everything to honour their legacy daily.”

The Portugal and Spain women’s teams held a minute’s silence for Jota and Silva before their match in the Women’s Euros in Switzerland on Thursday evening.

It came after Liverpool’s manager Arne Slot said in a statement: “What can anyone say at a time like this when the shock and the pain is so incredibly raw? I wish I had the words but I know I do not.

“All I have are feelings that I know so many people will share about a person and a player we loved dearly and a family we care so much about.

“My first thoughts are not those of a football manager. They are of a father, a son, a brother and an uncle and they belong to the family of Diogo and Andre Silva who have experienced such an unimaginable loss.”

Jota’s former manager at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, offered his thoughts in a post on Instagram.

“This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose, but I can’t see it,” he said.

“I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother Andre. Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father.

“We will miss you so much. All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them.”

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk posted on Instagram: “What a human being, what a player, but most importantly what an unbelievable family man.

“You mean so much to all of us and you always will!”

Cristiano Ronaldo, Jota’s captain in the national team, said: “It doesn’t make sense. Just now we were together in the National Team, just now you had gotten married.

“To your family, your wife, and your children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world.

“I know you will always be with them. Rest in Peace, Diogo and Andre. We will all miss you.”

Jota’s Liverpool teammates Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai have also paid tribute.

Szoboszlai wrote: “Words cannot describe how heartbroken and devastated we are… Your smile, your love for the game will never be forgotten.

“We will miss you so much, but you will stay with us forever, on and off the pitch.”

Jota’s former teammates Trent Alexander-Arnold, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Thiago Alcantara have also shared messages on social media.

Mane posted a picture of himself and Jota with heartbreak emojis.

It came as Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish wrote on X: “You feel helpless, knowing there’s so little we can do to ease the pain for his wife of just two weeks, his three beautiful children.”

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard shared an image of Jota on Instagram and wrote: “Condolences to his family and friends during this incredibly sad time.”

Liverpool owners Billy Hogan, John Henry and Tom Werner, who are part of the Fenway Sports Group, said: “This tragic situation and the reality of it is truly shocking, devastating and has left us numb with grief.”

Football icon Lionel Messi has also paid tribute, sharing an image of Jota on Instagram with the message “QEPD” – short for the Spanish phrase ‘que en paz descanse’, which translates to “may he rest in peace'”.

European football clubs such as Barcelona and AC Milan have also shared messages, along with basketball player LeBron James and tennis icon Rafael Nadal.

Meanwhile Liverpool FC have opened a physical and digital book of condolence for supporters and members of the public to sign.

The physical book is at the club’s stadium, in the Anfield Road Stand reception area until Sunday evening.

An avid video gamer, Jota also owned an eSports team and regularly streamed on Twitch.