Diego Maradona’s wild life off the pitch was almost as extraordinary as his brilliance on it
The shadow of Diego Maradona will forever loom large over any England vs Argentina meeting. Older England fans will remember the infamous 1986 quarter-final between the nations for the injustice of Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ goal rather than the brilliance of his stunning solo effort that followed as Argentina clinched a 2-1 victory at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium.
Maradona revelled in that victory, which came four years after the Falklands War, and went on to lift the trophy in the same stadium. Forty years on, England and Argentina are preparing to meet at the World Cup for the first time since 2002, when a David Beckham penalty clinched a famous group-stage win in Sapporo, Japan.
While Lionel Messi has arguably eclipsed him as his country’s greatest player, Argentina players and fans continue to be inspired by Maradona, with the class of 2026 even watching clips of him in action ahead of Wednesday’s semi-final.
Maradona died at the age of 60 in 2020, plunging his country and the football world into mourning. Here’s a look back on the tainted genius’s wild life and fallout from his premature death…
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Controversial death
Maradona died of heart failure in November 2020 at his home in Buenos Aires, while recuperating from surgery to remove a blood clot on the brain.
As the nation grieved, questions were soon asked about his care in the lead-up to his death, with seven members of his medical team being charged over negligible homicide. The cohort, who deny the charges, face between eight and 25 years in prison if convicted.
Investigators said the accused did not take the necessary measures to save Maradona despite being aware of his fragile health. A retrial into his death began in April. The first trial collapsed in May last year after one of the case’s three judges was accused of filming in court for a documentary.
Wild love life
Away from the pitch, Maradona had a few weaknesses, including when it came to the opposite sex. He fathered at least eight children with six different women, making the inheritance payouts following his death a complicated matter.
For years, Maradona maintained he had just two children – daughters Gianinna and Dalma – with Claudia Villafane, his wife of 15 years before they divorced in 2004.
He eventually admitted to fathering son Diego Junior and another daughter, Jana, after court battles with their mothers, with whom he had had affairs. There was no such dispute over his second son, Diego Fernando, who was born in 2013.
But that wasn’t all. In 2019, Maradona’s lawyer revealed his client had accepted the paternity of three children born in Cuba, where he spent time in the 2000s undergoing treatment for his well-documented cocaine addiction. Later, Maradona was engaged to Rocio Oliva for six years before they split in 2018.
£75m estate
Maradona’s death triggered an unseemly battle over his £75million estate, which experts predicted would generate millions for years to come in image rights, memorabilia and lucrative investments
Just 48 hours after his burial, Santiago Lara, a 19-year-old claiming to be fathered by the football icon, called for his body to be dug up so a DNA test could be carried out. The Italian government also wanted a piece of the pie amid claims he owed £36m in tax, plus interest and penalty charges, from his legendary spell with Napoli between 1985 and 1990.
Maradona’s lawyer, Angelo Pisano, tried to cast doubt over how much money he actually left behind, insisting the star never paid him, lived off fans’ charity and ate in restaurants for free.
However, his material assets are understood to have included five properties in Buenos Aires and luxury cars, including a Rolls-Royce Ghost and a BMW i8. Maradona also had contracts with sportswear company Puma and deals with video game firms Konami and EA Sports, along with business interests in Italy, investments in Cuba and football schools in China.
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