Diego Maradona

For decades, Italian authorities sought tens of millions of euros from Maradona in a tax assessment relating to his time in Naples, seizing possessions when he returned to Italy. In 2024, Italy's highest court ended the dispute in his favour and definitively rejected the tax evasion allegation.

Attribution

Personally implicated

For many years, Maradona refused to acknowledge Diego Sinagra, born of an extramarital relationship in Naples, despite an Italian paternity ruling. He later met and acknowledged additional children, while other claims of parentage emerged.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

A video released in 2014 showed an altercation between Maradona and his partner Rocío Oliva. Media outlets and women's rights advocates saw it as an incident of domestic violence.

State of the evidence

Disputed

Attribution

Personally implicated

Besieged by journalists outside his home, Maradona fired an air rifle and injured several reporters. An Argentine court subsequently imposed a suspended prison sentence.

Attribution

Personally implicated

After two matches at the 1994 World Cup, Maradona was expelled from the tournament following a positive test for several stimulant substances and received another fifteen-month suspension.

State of the evidence

Confirmed

Attribution

Personally implicated

An anti-doping test after Napoli–Bari detected traces of cocaine. The Italian football federation suspended Maradona for fifteen months, a sanction subsequently extended internationally.

State of the evidence

Confirmed

Legal status — source text

15-month sporting ban

Attribution

Personally implicated

A Naples court convicted Maradona of possessing and supplying cocaine, sentencing him to fourteen months' imprisonment, suspended, and a fine following a plea bargain concluded by his lawyer acting under a power of attorney.

Legal status — source text

14-month suspended sentence and fine

Attribution

Personally implicated

A few weeks after returning from Italy, Maradona was arrested in a Buenos Aires flat and charged with possession and use of cocaine. He was released on bail after approximately thirty hours in custody.

Attribution

Personally implicated

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome

Maradona scored the first goal in the Argentina–England quarter-final with his hand, without the referee penalising it. He subsequently acknowledged the act, which became one of the most famous controversies in football history.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Personally implicated

After Barcelona's defeat by Athletic Bilbao, Maradona played a central role in a mass brawl, involving kicks and confrontations between players in front of King Juan Carlos. The episode marked the end of his career at FC Barcelona.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated