Atalanta

Avellino

Bari

Como

Fiorentina

Inter
Milan

Juventus
Torino

Lecce

Napoli

Pisa

Roma

Sampdoria

Udinese

Verona

Serie A 1985-86 team distribution

Serie A 1985-86 Winners
Juventus F.C. 22nd Title

Final classification[link]

Results[link]

References and sources[link]

• Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005

External links[link]

• it:Classifica calcio Serie A italiana 1986 - Italian version with pictures and info.
• [1] - All results on RSSSF Website.

Serie A

Countries	Italy
Confederation	UEFA
Founded	1898 officially 1929 as round-robin tournament
Number of teams	20
Levels on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Serie B
Domestic cup(s)	Coppa Italia Supercoppa Italiana
International cup(s)	UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League
Current champions	Juventus (28th title) (2011–12)
Most championships	Juventus (28 titles)
TV partners	SKY Italia Mediaset Premium
Website	legaseriea.it
2012–13 Serie A

Serie A (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsɛːrje ˈa]), also called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since the 1929-30 season. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new league, the Lega Serie A, had been created for the 2010–11 season. Serie A has produced the highest number of European Cup finalists: Italian clubs have reached the final of the competition on a record twenty-six different occasions, winning the title twelve times.^[1] Serie A is ranked 4th among European leagues according to UEFA's league coefficient behind the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, and German Bundesliga, which is based on the performance of Italian clubs in the Champions League and the Europa League.^[2] It also ranked 5th in world according to the first trends of the 2011 IFFHS rating.^[3]

In its current format, the Italian Football Championship was revised from having regional and interregional rounds, to just one solid league from the 1929–30 season onwards; the Serie A system carries on today. The championship titles won before 1929 are officially recognised by FIGC as a championship in the same way the ones since then are. The 1945–46 season, when the league was played over two geographical groups due to WWII destructions, is not statistically considered, even if its title is fully official.^[4]

The league hosts three of the world's most famous clubs as Juventus, Milan and Internazionale, all founding members of the G-14, a group which represented the largest and most prestigious European football clubs; Serie A was the only league to produce three founding members.^[5] More players have won the coveted Ballon d'Or award while playing at a Serie A club than any other league in the world.^[6] Milan is one of two clubs with the most official international titles in the world.^[7] Juventus, Italy's most successful club of the 20th century^[8] and the most successful Italian team,^[9] is tied for fourth in Europe and seventh in the world in the same ranking.^[10] The club is the only one in the world to have won all possible confederation competitions and the club world title.^[11][12] Internazionale, following their achievements in the 2009–10 season, became the first Italian team to have achieved The Treble.

Format[link]

For most of Serie A's history there were 16 or 18 clubs competing at the top level; however, since 2004–05 there have been 20 clubs altogether. A season (1947–1948) was played with 21 teams for political reasons. Below is a complete record of how many teams played in each season throughout the league's history;

Scudetto patch.

During the course of a season, from August to June, each club plays each of the other teams twice; once at home and once away, totaling 38 games for each team by the end of the season. Therefore, in Italian football a true round-robin format is used. In the first half of the season, called the andata, each team plays once against each league opponent, for a total of 19 games. In the second half of the season, called the ritorno, the teams play in exactly the same order that they did in the first half of the season, the only difference being that home and away situations are switched. Since the 1994-1995 season, teams were awarded three points for a win, one point for a draw, and no points for a loss.

Since Italy is currently rated as one of the top three European countries in terms of club football ratings,^[13] the top four teams in the Serie A qualified for the UEFA Champions League(from the 2012-13 season this will be cut to three, as Germany's Bundesliga has leap-frogged Serie A into the top three biggest European leagues). The top three teams qualify directly to the group phase, while the fourth-placed team enters the competition at the third qualifying round and must win a two-legged knockout tie in order to enter the group phase. Teams finishing 5th and 6th qualify for the UEFA Europa League Tournament. A third UEFA Europa League spot is reserved for the winner of the Coppa Italia. If the Coppa Italia champion has already qualified for the major European tournament by placing in the top four of Serie A, the third UEFA Europa League spot goes to the losing finalist. If both Coppa Italia finalists finish among the top six teams in Serie A, the 7th classified team in Serie A is awarded the UEFA Europa League spot. The three lowest placed teams are relegated to Serie B.

Before the 2005–06 season if two or more teams were tied in points for first place, for only one spot in a European tournament, or in the relegation zone, teams would play tie-breaking games after the season was over to determine which team would be champion, or be awarded a European tournament spot, or be saved or relegated. Since 2005–06, if two or more teams end the season with the same number of points, the ordering is determined by their head-to-head records. In case two or more teams have same total points and same head-to-head records, goal difference becomes the secondary deciding factor.

The Star[link]

In 1958, based on an idea of Umberto Agnelli, the Star ("Stella") was introduced, a special honour to recognize the clubs that have won multiple championships. However, the Star is not officially regulated by the Federazione Italiana Gioco Calcio (FIGC) and is voluntarily added to team jerseys by the respective team.^[14] The practice is to award one star for ten titles. The first team to adopt a star was Juventus in Italy and Europe,^[15] who added a star above their badge in 1958 to represent their tenth Serie A title. In 1982, they received their second star for having won their 20th league title.

The current officially-sanctioned Serie A stars are:

• Juventus, received in 1958, 1982.
• Internazionale, received in 1966.
• Milan, received in 1979.

There has been a controversy regarding if Juventus F.C. has the right or not to add a third star to their jersey. Adding the two championships that were taken off Juventus F.C. because of the Calciopoli scandal, would mean that the team would have a total of 30 Serie A Championships.^[16] Many italian tifosi believe it is necessary that the Federazione Italiana Gioco Calcio (FIGC) steps in and ends the controversy, as well as the Deutsche Fußball Liga did in Germany in 2004.

History[link]

Serie A, as it is structured today, began in 1929. From 1898 to 1922 the competition was organised into regional groups. Because of ever growing teams attending regional championships, FIGC split the CCI (Italian Football Confederation) in 1921. When CCI teams rejoined the FIGC created two interregional divisions renaming Categories into Divisions and splitting FIGC sections into two North-South leagues. In 1926 due to internal crises FIGC changed internal settings adding southern teams to the national divisions which lead to 1929-30 final settlement. No title was awarded in 1927 after Torino were stripped of the championship by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC). Torino were declared champions in the 1948-49 season following a plane crash near the end of the season in which the entire team was killed.

The Serie A Championship title is often referred to as the scudetto (small shield) because since the 1924-25 season the winning team will bear a small coat of arms with the Italian tricolour on their strip in the following season. The most successful club is Juventus with 28 championships, followed by Milan (18), Internazionale (18), and Genoa (9). From 2004–05 onwards an actual trophy was awarded to club on the pitch after the last turn of the championship. The trophy, called Coppa Campioni d'Italia, is official since the 1960–61 season, but between 1961 and 2004 it was consigned to the winning clubs at the head office of the Lega Nazionale Professionisti.

On 30 April 2009, Serie A announced a split from Serie B. Nineteen of the twenty clubs voted in favour of the move in an argument over television rights. Relegation-threatened Lecce voted against. Maurizio Beretta, the former head of Italy's employers' association, will be the president of the new league.^{[17][18][19][20]}

Television rights[link]

In the past individual clubs competing in the league had the rights to sell their broadcast rights to specific channels in Italy, unlike in most other European countries. The three broadcasters in Italy are the satellite broadcaster SKY Italia, along with terrestrial broadcasters Mediaset Premium and Dahlia TV for their own pay television networks; RAI is allowed to broadcast only highlights (in exclusive from 13:30 to 22:30 CET). This is a list of television rights in Italy (until 2009–2010):

• SKY Italia (all matches)
• Mediaset Premium (all matches of Milan, Inter, Juventus, Lazio, Roma, Napoli and matches in house and guests of the above teams of Genoa, Atalanta, Chievo, Bari)
• RAI (highlights)

For the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons, Serie A clubs negotiating club TV rights collectively rather than individually for the first time since 1998–99. The domestic rights for those two seasons were sold for €1.149bn to Sky Italia.^[21]

International[link]

Global rights for the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons were sold for €181.5M to MP & Silva.^[22]

In countries and territories outside of Italy, the league is broadcast on adventure time Raitalia (numerous countries in several continents), ESPN (United Kingdom), Setanta Sports (Ireland), Canal+ (Spain), Fox Soccer Channel, Fox Soccer Plus and Fox Sports en Español (United States), The Score and Fox Sports World Canada (Canada), TV Esporte Interativo, Rede Gazeta, TV Cultura, ESPN Brasil, Sportv (Brazil) and ESPN Latin America (Latin America), CCTV5 (China), KBS Sports (South Korea), Al Jazeera Sports (Middle East And North Africa), Astro SuperSport (Malaysia), Indosiar (Indonesia), Neo Sports, TrueVisions (Thailand), mio TV (Singapore), TEN Sports (India), Sport1 (The Netherlands), Canal+ Poland (Poland), NTV Turkey (Turkey), TV+ (Bulgaria), Digi Sport (Hungary), Arena Sport, Sport Klub (Serbia), SuperSport (Albania), Supersport Kosova (Kosovo), Telma (Macedonia), In televizija (Montenegro), Telelatino, Sport 5 (Israel), HiTV (Nigeria) and Sport1 (Lithuania).

In the 1990s Serie A was at its most popular in the UK when it was shown on Channel 4, although it has actually appeared on more UK channels than any other league, rarely staying in one place for long since 2002. Serie A has appeared in the UK on BSB Sports Channel (1990–91), Sky Sports (1991–92), Channel 4 (1992–2002), Eurosport (2002–04), Setanta Sports and Bravo (2004–07), Channel Five (2007–08) and ESPN (since 2009), In Mexico Televisa Deportes Network HD two games delay in the week.

The Score Television Network holds exclusive Canadian media rights to Serie A, which also includes full digital rights for theScore.com. Coverage begins in the fall of 2010 and it will be the first time a major Canadian sports network will deliver Serie A matches in HD to sports fans all across Canada.

Champions[link]

Main article: List of Italian football champions

• The 1926–27 title was initially won by Torino, but was rescinded due to the Allemandi match fixing scandal.
• The 2004–05 and 2005–06 titles were initially won by Juventus, but were rescinded following the Calciopoli scandal. The 2004–05 title was not assigned, while the 2005–06 title was subsequently awarded to Internazionale.
• A decoration was awarded to Spezia Calcio in 2002 by FIGC for the 1944 wartime championship. However, the Federation stated that it cannot be considered as a scudetto.

Serie A clubs[link]

For more details see List of Italian Football Championship clubs

Prior to 1929, many clubs competed in the top level of Italian football as the earlier rounds were competed up to 1922 on a regional basis then interregional up to 1929. Below is a list of Serie A clubs who have competed in the competition when it has been a league format (60 in total).

Seasons in Serie A[link]

The bolded teams compete in Serie A currently. Internazionale is the only team that has played Serie A football in every season.

^ Includes 8 championships played by its forerunners Sampierdarenese and Liguria.

Serie A members for 2011–12[link]

Atalanta

Bologna

Cagliari

Catania

Cesena

Chievo

Fiorentina

Genoa

Internazionale

Juventus

Lazio

Lecce

Milan

Napoli

Novara

Palermo

Parma

Roma

Siena

Udinese

Location of (qualified) teams in Serie A 2011–12

The following twenty clubs are competing in Serie A during the 2011–12 season.

Players[link]

Non-EU players[link]

Unlike La Liga, which imposed a quota on the number of non-EU players on each club, Serie A clubs could sign as many non-EU players as available on domestic transfer. But since the 2003–04 season a quota has been imposed on each of the clubs limiting the number of non-EU, non-EFTA and non-Swiss players who may be signed from abroad each season,^[23] following provisional measures^[24] were had been introduced in the 2002–03 season, which allowed Serie A & B clubs to sign only one non-EU player in 2002 summer transfer window.

In the middle of the 2000–01 season, the old quota system was abolished, which no longer limited each team to having more than 5 non-EU player and using no more than 3 in each match.^[24][25] Concurrent with the abolishment of the quota, FIGC had investigated footballers that used fake passports. Alberto and Warley, Alejandro Da Silva and Jorginho Paulista of Udinese,^[26] Fábio Júnior and Gustavo Bartelt of Roma,^[27] Dida of Milan, Álvaro Recoba of Inter, Thomas Job, Francis Zé, Jean Ondoa of Sampdoria, Jeda and Dede of Vicenza were banned in July 2001, for 6 months to 1 year.^[28] However, most of the bans were subsequently reduced.

The number of non-EU players was reduced from 265 in 2002–03 season to 166 in 2006–07 season.^[29] It also included players got EU status after their countries assessed into the EU (see 2004 and 2007 enlargement), made players likes Adrian Mutu, Valeri Bojinov, Marek Jankulovski and Marius Stankevičius no longer consider as non-EU players.

The rule had minor change in August 2004,^[30] June 2005,^[31] June 2006.^[32][33] and June 2007.^[34]

Since the 2008–09 season, 3 quotas have been awarded to clubs that do not have non-EU players in their squad (previously only newly promoted clubs could had 3 quota); Clubs that have one non-EU player have 2 quotas. Those clubs that have 2 non-EU players, are awarded 1 quota and 1 conditional quota, which is awarded after: 1) Transferred 1 non-EU player abroad, or 2) Release 1 non-EU player as free agent, or 3) A non-EU player received EU nationality. Clubs with 3 or more non-EU players, have 2 conditional quotas, but releasing two non-EU players as free agent, will only have 1 quota instead of 2.^[35] Serie B and Lega Pro clubs cannot sign non-EU player from abroad, except those followed the club promoted from Serie D.

Big clubs with many foreigners, usually borrow quotas from other clubs that have few foreigners or no foreigners, in order to sign more non-EU players. Adrian Mutu joined Juventus via Livorno in 2005, at that time Romania was not a member of EU. Other case likes Júlio César, Victor Obinna and Maxwell who joined Internazionale from Chievo (first two) and Empoli respectively.

On 2 July 2010, the above conditional quota reduced back to 1, however if a team did not have any non-EU players, that team could still sign up to 3 non-EU players.^[36][37][38]

FIFA World Players of the Year[link]

• Lothar Matthäus: 1991 (Internazionale)
• Marco van Basten: 1992 (Milan)
• Roberto Baggio: 1993 (Juventus)
• George Weah: 1995 (Milan²)
• Ronaldo: 1997 (Internazionale²)
• Zinedine Zidane: 1998, 2000 (Juventus)
• Ronaldo: 2002 (Internazionale¹)
• Fabio Cannavaro: 2006 (Juventus¹)
• Kaká: 2007 (Milan)

¹Player was a member of the club for the first half of the calendar year (The second part of a finished season - January to May)
²Player was a member of the club for the second half of the calendar year (The first part of a new season - August to December)

List of Lega Serie A presidents[link]

• Maurizio Beretta, 2010–present.^[39][40]

See also[link]

• All-time Serie A table
• Football records in Italy
• List of foreign Serie A players
• UEFA coefficient

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Site
• FIGC Official Site

Diego Maradona

Diego Maradona in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Diego Armando Maradona
Date of birth	(1960-10-30) 30 October 1960 (age 51)
Place of birth	Lanús, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Playing position	Second Striker/Attacking Midfielder
Youth career
1968–1969	Estrella Roja
1970–1974	Los Cebollitas
1975-1976	Argentinos Juniors
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1976–1981	Argentinos Juniors	167	(115)
1981–1982	Boca Juniors	40	(28)
1982–1984	Barcelona	36	(22)
1984–1991	Napoli	259	(115)
1992–1993	Sevilla	26	(5)
1993–1994	Newell's Old Boys	5	(0)
1995–1997	Boca Juniors	30	(7)
Total		492	(258)
National team
1977–1994	Argentina	91	(34)
Teams managed
1994	Mandiyú de Corrientes
1995	Racing Club
2008–2010	Argentina
2011–	Al Wasl
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Diego Armando Maradona Franco (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdjeɣo maɾaˈðona]; born 30 October 1960) is a retired Argentine football player, and current manager of Al Wasl FC in Dubai. Many experts, football critics, former and current players consider Maradona the greatest football player of all time.^[1][2][3][4] He won FIFA Player of the Century award which was to be decided by votes on their official website, their official magazine and a grand jury.

He is the only player in football history who set world-record contract fees twice. The first, when he was transferred to Barcelona for a then world record £5m and the second, when he was transferred to Napoli for another record fee £6.9m. Over the course of his professional club career Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys. In his international career, playing for Argentina, he earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals.

He played in four FIFA World Cup tournaments, including the 1986 tournament, where he captained Argentina and led them to their victory over West Germany in the final, winning the Golden Ball award as the tournament's best player. In that same tournament's quarterfinal round, he scored both goals in a 2–1 victory over England that entered football history, though for two different reasons. The first goal was via an unpenalized handball known as the "Hand of God", while the second goal followed a 60 m (66 yd) dribble past five England players, voted "The Goal of the Century" by FIFA.com voters in 2002.^[5]

Maradona is considered one of the sport's most controversial and newsworthy figures. He was suspended from football for 15 months in 1991 after failing a drug test, for cocaine, in Italy, and he was sent home from the 1994 World Cup in the USA after testing positive for ephedrine. After retiring from playing on his 37th birthday in 1997,^[6] he gained weight, suffered ill health and the effects of cocaine use. In 2005, a stomach stapling operation helped control his weight gain, and he overcame his cocaine addiction. His outspoken manners have sometimes put him at odds with journalists and sport executives. Although he had little managerial experience, he became head coach of the Argentina national team in November 2008, and held the job for eighteen months, until his contract expired after the 2010 World Cup.

Early years[link]

Maradona was born in Lanús, but raised in Villa Fiorito, a shantytown on the southern outskirts of Buenos Aires,^[7] to a poor family that had moved from Corrientes Province. He was the first son after three daughters. He has two younger brothers, Hugo (el Turco) and Eduardo (Lalo), both of whom were also professional football players. Maradona has Italian and indigenous ancestry.^[8]

At age 10, Maradona was spotted by a talent scout while he was playing in his neighborhood club Estrella Roja. He became a staple of Los Cebollitas (The Little Onions), the junior team of Buenos Aires's Argentinos Juniors. As a 12-year-old ball boy, he amused spectators by showing his wizardry with the ball during the halftime intermissions of first division games.^[9]

Club career[link]

Argentinos Juniors and Boca Juniors[link]

Diego Maradona's debut for Argentinos Juniors against Talleres de Córdoba, 1976.

On 20 October 1976, Maradona made his professional debut with Argentinos Juniors, ten days before his sixteenth birthday.^[6] He played there between 1976 and 1981, scoring 115 goals in 167 appearances before his £1m transfer to Boca Juniors. Having joined the Boca squad midway through the 1981 season, Maradona played through 1982 earning his first league championship medal. Whilst playing for Argentinos Juniors, English club Sheffield United put in an offer of £180,000 for his services but the bid was rejected.

FC Barcelona[link]

Maradona playing for Boca Juniors in 1981.

After the 1982 World Cup, in June, Maradona was transferred to Barcelona in Spain for a then world record £5m.^[6] In 1983, under coach César Luis Menotti, Barcelona and Maradona won the Copa del Rey (Spain's annual national cup competition), beating Real Madrid, and the Spanish Super Cup, beating Athletic de Bilbao. However, Maradona had a difficult tenure in Barcelona.^[10] First a bout with hepatitis, then a broken ankle caused by an ill-timed tackle by Athletic's Andoni Goikoetxea threatened with jeopardizing Maradona's career,^[6] but after treatment and therapy it was possible for him to soon be back on the pitch. At Barcelona, Maradona got into frequent disputes with the team's directors, especially club president Josep Lluís Núñez, culminating with a demand to be transferred out of Camp Nou in 1984. He was transferred to Napoli in Italy's Serie A for another record fee, £6.9m.

Napoli[link]

At Napoli, Maradona reached the peak of his professional career. He quickly became an adored star among the club's fans, and in his time there he elevated the team to the most successful era in its history. Led by Maradona, Napoli won their only Serie A Italian Championships in 1986/87 and 1989/1990, placing second in the league twice, in 1987/88 and 1988/89. Other honors during the Maradona era at Napoli included the Coppa Italia in 1987, (second place in the Coppa Italia in 1989), the UEFA Cup in 1989 and the Italian Supercup in 1990. Maradona was the top scorer in Serie A in 1987/88.

During his time in Italy, Maradona's personal problems increased. His cocaine use continued, and he received US $70,000 in fines from his club for missing games and practices, ostensibly because of 'stress'.^[11] He faced a scandal there regarding an illegitimate son; and he was also the object of some suspicion over an alleged friendship with the Camorra.^{[12][13][14][15][16]}

Later on, in honor of Maradona and his achievements during his career at Napoli, the #10 jersey of Napoli was officially retired.^[17]

Sevilla, Newell's Old Boys and Boca Juniors[link]

After serving a 15-month ban for failing a drug test for cocaine, Maradona left Napoli in disgrace in 1992. Despite interest from Real Madrid of Spain and Olympique Marseille of France, he signed for Sevilla of Spain, where he stayed for one year.^[18]

In 1993 he played for Newell's Old Boys and in 1995 he returned to Boca Juniors for two years.^[6]

Maradona also appeared for Tottenham Hotspur in a friendly match against Internazionale, shortly before the 1986 world cup. The match was Osvaldo Ardiles' testimonial, who insisted his friend Maradona played, which Tottenham won 2–1. He played alongside Glenn Hoddle, who gave up his number ten shirt for the Argentine. Maradona would go on to dribble past Hoddle during his "goal of the century" against England in the World Cup that year.

International career[link]

Maradona and the Youth World Cup trophy in 1979.

Along with his time at Napoli, international football is where Maradona found his fame. Playing for the Albicelestes of the Argentina national football team, he participated in four consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments, leading Argentina to victory in 1986 and to second place in 1990.

He made his full international debut at age 16, against Hungary on 27 February 1977. At age 18, he played the World Youth Championship for Argentina, and was the star of the tournament, shining in their 3–1 final win over the Soviet Union. On 2 June 1979, Maradona scored his first senior international goal in a 3–1 win against Scotland at Hampden Park.^[19] He is the only player to win the Golden Ball at both the FIFA U-20 World Cup and FIFA World Cup, in 1979 and 1986.

1982 World Cup[link]

Maradona played his first World Cup tournament in 1982. In the first round, Argentina, the defending champions, lost to Belgium. Although the team convincingly beat Hungary and El Salvador to progress to the second round, they were defeated in the second round by Brazil and by eventual winners Italy. Maradona played in all five matches without being substituted, scoring twice against Hungary, but was sent off with 5 minutes remaining in the game against Brazil for serious foul play.

1986 World Cup[link]

Diego Maradona with the World Cup obtained in 1986.

Maradona captained the Argentine national team to victory in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, winning the final in Mexico against West Germany. Throughout the 1986 World Cup Maradona asserted his dominance and was the most dynamic player of the tournament. He played every minute of every Argentina game, scored 5 goals and made 5 assists. After scoring two goals in the 2–1 quarter-final win against England his legend was cemented.

This match was played with the background of the Falklands War between Argentina and the United Kingdom and emotions were still lingering in the air throughout the entire match. Replays showed that the first goal was scored by striking the ball with his hand. Maradona was coyly evasive, describing it as "a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God." It became known as the "Hand of God". Ultimately, on 22 August 2005 Maradona acknowledged on his television show that he had hit the ball with his hand purposely, and that he immediately knew the goal was illegitimate. This became known as an international fiasco in World Cup history. The goal stood, much to the wrath of the English players.^[20]

Maradona's second goal, just four minutes after the hotly disputed hand-goal, was later voted by FIFA as the greatest goal in the history of the World Cup. He received the ball in his own half, swivelled around, and with 11 touches ran more than half the length of the field, dribbling past five English outfield players (Peter Beardsley, Steve Hodge, Peter Reid, Terry Butcher, and Terry Fenwick) and goalkeeper Peter Shilton. This goal was voted "Goal of the Century" in a 2002 online poll conducted by FIFA.^[22]

Maradona followed this with two more goals in the semi-final against Belgium, including another virtuoso dribbling display for the second goal. In the final, the opposing West German side attempted to contain him by double-marking, but he nevertheless found the space to give the final pass to Jorge Burruchaga for the winning goal. Argentina beat West Germany 3–2 in front of 115,000 spectators at the Azteca Stadium.

During the course of the tournament, Maradona attempted or created more than half of Argentina's shots, embarked on 90 dribbles some three times more than any other player and was fouled 53 times winning his team twice as many free kicks as any player.^[23][24] Maradona also scored or assisted 10 of Argentina's 14 goals and despite being heavily marked during the final played a crucial part in all three winning goals ensuring that he would be remembered as one of the greatest names in football history.^[25][26][27]

By the end of the tournament, Maradona went on winning the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament by a unanimous vote and was widely regarded to have won the World Cup virtually single-handedly.^{[28][29][30][31]} In a tribute to him, the Azteca Stadium authorities also built a statue of him scoring the "goal of the century" and placed it at the entrance of the stadium.^[32]

1990 World Cup[link]

Maradona captained Argentina again in the 1990 FIFA World Cup to yet another World Cup Final. An ankle injury affected his overall performance, and he was much less dominant than four years earlier. Argentina was almost eliminated in the first round, only qualifying in third position from their group. In the round of 16 match against Brazil, Claudio Caniggia scored the only goal after being set up by Maradona.

In the quarter final, Argentina faced Yugoslavia, the match ending 0–0 after 120 minutes, and Argentina advancing on penalty kicks, despite Maradona missing one of the penalties in the shootout with a weak shot at the centre of the goal. The semifinal against the host nation Italy was also resolved on penalties after a 1–1 draw; this time, Maradona was successful with his effort, daringly placing the ball at exactly the same spot as his missed penalty in the previous round. In the final, Argentina lost 1–0 to West Germany, the only goal being a penalty by Andreas Brehme in the 85th minute after a controversial foul on Rudi Völler.

1994 World Cup[link]

At the 1994 FIFA World Cup Maradona played in only two games, scoring one goal against Greece, before being sent home after failing a drug test for ephedrine doping. In his autobiography, Maradona argued that the test result was due to his personal trainer giving him the power drink Rip Fuel. His claim was that the U.S. version, unlike the Argentine one, contained the chemical and that, having run out of his Argentine dosage, his trainer unwittingly bought the U.S. formula. FIFA expelled him from USA '94 and Argentina were subsequently eliminated in the second round. Maradona has also separately claimed that he had an agreement with FIFA, on which the organization reneged, to allow him to use the drug for weight loss before the competition in order to be able to play.^[33] According to Maradona, this was so that the World Cup would not lose prestige because of his absence. This allegation has never been proven.

His failed drugs test at the 1994 World Cup signaled the end of his international career, which had lasted 17 years and yielded 34 goals from 91 games.

Playing style[link]

Maradona had a compact physique and could withstand physical pressure well. His strong legs and low center of gravity gave him an advantage in short sprints. His physical strengths were illustrated by his two goals against Belgium in the 1986 World Cup. Maradona was a strategist and a team player, as well as highly technical with the ball. He could manage himself effectively in limited spaces, and would attract defenders only to quickly dash out of the melee (as in the second 1986 goal against England),^[34] or give an assist to a free teammate. Being short, but strong, he could hold the ball long enough with a defender on his back to wait for a teammate making a run or to find a gap for a quick shot.

One of Maradona's trademark moves was dribbling full-speed on the right wing, and on reaching the opponent's goal line, delivering accurate passes to his teammates. Another trademark was the Rabona, a reverse-cross pass shot behind the leg that holds all the weight. This maneuver led to several assists, such as the powerful cross for Ramón Díaz's header in the 1980 friendly against Switzerland. He was also a dangerous free kick taker.

Maradona was dominantly left-footed, often using his left foot even when the ball was positioned more suitably for a right-footed connection. His first goal against Belgium in the 1986 World Cup semi-final is a worthy indicator of such; he had run into the inside right channel to receive a pass but let the ball travel across to his left foot, requiring more technical ability. During his run past several England players in the previous round for the "Goal of the Century", he did not use his right foot once, despite spending the whole movement on the right-hand side of the pitch. In the 1990 World Cup second round tie against Brazil, he did use his right foot to set up the winning goal for Caniggia due to two Brazilian markers forcing him into a position that made use of his left foot less practical.

Retirement and honours[link]

Diego Maradona's blaugrana shirt at display in FC Barcelona Museum.

Hounded for years by the press, Maradona once fired a compressed-air rifle at reporters who he claimed were invading his privacy. This quote from former teammate Jorge Valdano summarizes the feelings of many:

He is someone many people want to emulate, a controversial figure, loved, hated, who stirs great upheaval, especially in Argentina... Stressing his personal life is a mistake. Maradona has no peers inside the pitch, but he has turned his life into a show, and is now living a personal ordeal that should not be imitated. ^[35]

In 2000, Maradona published his autobiography Yo Soy El Diego ("I am The Diego"), which became an instant bestseller^[36] in his home country. Two years later, Maradona donated the Cuban royalties of his book to "the Cuban people and Fidel."^[37]

In 1999, he won FIFA Player of the Century award which was to be decided by votes on their official website, their official magazine and a grand jury. Maradona won the Internet based poll by wide margins, garnering 53.6% of the votes against 18.53% for Pelé. In spite of this, and shortly before the ceremony, FIFA unexpectedly decided to add a second award and appointed a "Football Family" committee composed of football journalists that also gave to Pelé the title of best player of the century to make it a draw. Maradona also came fifth in the vote of IFFHS(International Federation of Football History and Statistics).^[38]

Maradona at the Soccer Aid friendly match in 2006, after losing weight

In 2001, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) asked FIFA for authorization to retire the jersey number 10 for Maradona. FIFA did not grant the request, even though Argentine officials have maintained that FIFA hinted that it would.^[39]

Maradona has won other fan polls, including a 2002 FIFA poll in which his second goal against England was chosen as the best goal ever scored in a World Cup; he also won the most votes in a poll to determine the All-Time Ultimate World Cup Team.

Argentinos Juniors named its stadium after Maradona on 26 December 2003.

In 2003, Maradona was employed by the Libyan footballer Al-Saadi Gaddafi, the third son of Colonel Gaddafi, as a "technical consultant", while Al-Saadi was playing for the Italian club, Perugia Calcio, which was in Serie A at the time. ^[40]

On 22 June 2005, it was announced that Maradona would return to Boca Juniors as a sports vice president in charge of managing the First Division roster (after a disappointing 2004–05 season, which coincided with Boca's centenary).^[41] His contract began 1 August 2005, and one of his first recommendations proved to be very effective: he was the one who decided to hire Alfio Basile as the new coach. With Maradona fostering a close relationship with the players, Boca went on to win the 2005 Apertura title, the 2006 Clausura title, the 2005 Copa Sudamericana and the 2005 Recopa Sudamericana.

On 15 August 2005, Maradona made his debut as host of a talk-variety show on Argentine television, La Noche del 10 ("The Night of the no. 10"). His main guest on opening night was Pelé; the two had a friendly chat, showing no signs of past differences. However, the show also included a cartoon villain with a clear physical resemblance to Pelé. In subsequent evenings, he led the ratings on all occasions but one. Most guests were drawn from the worlds of football and show business, including Zidane, Ronaldo and Hernán Crespo, but also included interviews with other notable personalities such as Fidel Castro and Mike Tyson.

On 26 August 2006, it was announced that Maradona was quitting his position in the club Boca Juniors because of disagreements with the AFA, who selected Basile to be the new coach of the Argentina national football team.^[42]

The award-winning Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica made a documentary about Maradona's life, entitled Maradona.

In May 2006, Maradona agreed to take part in UK's Soccer Aid (a program to raise money for Unicef).^[43] In September 2006, Maradona, in his famous blue and white number 10, was the captain for Argentina in a three-day World Cup of Indoor Football tournament in Spain.

Also in 2006, Diego Maradona was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador of IIMSAM the Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition.^[44]

On 22 March 2010, Maradona was chosen number 1 in The Greatest 10 World Cup players of all time by The Times,^[45] a London based newspaper.

Managerial career[link]

Club management[link]

He attempted to work as a coach alongside former Argentinos Juniors midfield team mate Carlos Fren. The pair led Mandiyú of Corrientes (1994) and Racing Club (1995), but with little success. In May 2011 he became manager of Dubai club Al Wasl FC in the United Arab Emirates Pro-League.^[46]

International management[link]

After the resignation of Argentina national football team coach Alfio Basile in 2008, Diego Maradona immediately proposed his candidacy for the vacant role. According to several press sources, his major challengers included Diego Simeone, Carlos Bianchi, Miguel Ángel Russo and Sergio Batista.

On 29 October 2008, AFA chairman Julio Grondona confirmed that Maradona would be the head coach of the national side from December 2008. On 19 November 2008, Diego Maradona managed Argentina for the first time when Argentina played against Scotland at Hampden Park in Glasgow which Argentina won 1–0.^[47]

After winning his first three matches in charge of the national team, he oversaw a 6–1 defeat to Bolivia, equalling the team's worst ever margin of defeat. With two matches remaining in the qualification tournament for the 2010 World Cup, Argentina was in fifth place and faced the possibility of failing to qualify, but victory in the last two matches secured qualification for the finals.^[48][49]

After Argentina's qualification, Maradona used abusive language at the live post-game press conference, telling members of the media to "suck it and keep on sucking it".^[50] FIFA responded with a two month ban on all footballing activity, which expired on 15 January 2010, and a CHF 25,000 fine, with a warning as to his future conduct.^[51] The friendly match scheduled to take place at home to the Czech Republic on 15 December, during the period of the ban, was cancelled. The only match Argentina played during Maradona's ban was a friendly away to Catalonia, which Argentina lost 4–2.

At the World Cup finals in June 2010, Argentina started by winning 1–0 against Nigeria, and then defeated South Korea by 4–1, with a hat-trick from Gonzalo Higuain.^[52][53] In the final match of the group stage Argentina won 2–0 against Greece to win their the group and advance to a second round meeting with Mexico.^[54] After defeating Mexico 3–1, Argentina was in turn routed by Germany, 4–0 in the quarter finals to go out of the competition.^[55] Argentina was ranked 5th in the tournament. After the defeat to Germany Maradona admitted that he was considering his future as Argentina coach, "I may leave tomorrow," he said.^[56] On 15 July 2010, the Argentine Football Association said that he would be offered a new 4 year deal that would keep him in charge through to the summer of 2014 when Brazil stages the World Cup,^[57] however on 27 July the AFA announced that its board had unanimously decided not to renew his contract.^[58] Afterwards on 29 July 2010, Maradona claimed that AFA president Julio Grondona and director of national teams Carlos Bilardo had "lied to" and "betrayed" and effectively sacked him from the role. Saying "they wanted me to continue, but seven of my staff should not go on, if he told me that, it meant he did not want me to keep working".^[59]

Personal life[link]

Family[link]

His parents are Diego Maradona Snr and Dalma Salvadore Franco. His father is of Native American extraction.^[60][61] Maradona married long-time fiancée Claudia Villafañe on 7 November 1984 in Buenos Aires, and they had two daughters, Dalma Nerea (born on 2 April 1987) and Giannina Dinorah (born on 16 May 1989), by whom he became a grandfather in 2009.^[62] In his autobiography, Maradona admits he was not always faithful to Claudia, even though he refers to her as the love of his life.

Maradona and Villafañe divorced in 2004. Daughter Dalma has since asserted that the divorce was the best solution for all, as her parents remained on friendly terms. They travelled together to Napoli for a series of homages in June 2005^[63] and were seen together on many other occasions, including the Argentina matches during 2006 FIFA World Cup.

During the divorce proceedings, Maradona admitted he was the father of Diego Sinagra (born in Naples on 20 September 1986). The Italian courts had already so ruled in 1993, after Maradona refused to undergo DNA tests for proving or disproving his paternity. Diego Jr. met Maradona for the first time in May 2003 after tricking his way onto a golf course in Italy where Maradona was playing.^[64] Diego Sinagra is now a footballer playing in Italy.^[65]

After the divorce, Claudia embarked on a career as a theatre producer, and Dalma was seeking an acting career; she had expressed her desire to attend the Actor's Studio in Los Angeles.^[66][67]

His younger daughter, Giannina, is currently married to Manchester City striker Sergio Agüero, with whom she has a son, Benjamin, born in Madrid on 19 February 2009.

His mother, Dalma, died on 19 November 2011. Diego was in Dubai at the time, and desperately tried to fly back in time to see her, but was too late. She was 81 years old.

Drug abuse and health issues[link]

Maradona after gaining weight, March 2005

From the mid-1980s until 2004 Diego Maradona was addicted to cocaine. He allegedly began using the drug in Barcelona in 1983.^[68] By the time he was playing for Napoli he had a regular addiction, which began to interfere with his ability to play football.^[69]

Over the years following his retirement his health seriously deteriorated. On 4 January 2000, while vacationing in Punta del Este, Uruguay, Maradona had to be rushed to the emergency room of a local clinic. In a press conference, doctors stated that it was detected heart muscle damage due to "an underlying health issue". It was later known that traces of cocaine were found in his blood and Maradona had to explain the circumstances to the police. After this he left Argentina and went to Cuba in order to follow a drug rehab plan.

On 18 April 2004, doctors reported that Maradona had suffered a major myocardial infarction following a cocaine overdose; he was admitted to intensive care in a Buenos Aires hospital. Scores of fans gathered around the clinic. He was taken off the respirator on 23 April and remained in intensive care for several days before being discharged on 29 April. He tried to return to Cuba, where he had spent most of his time in the years leading up to the heart attack, but his family opposed, having filed a judicial petition to exercise his legal guardianship.

Maradona had a tendency to put on weight, and suffered increasingly from obesity from the end of his playing career until undergoing gastric bypass surgery in a clinic in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia on 6 March 2005.^[70] His surgeon said that Maradona would follow a liquid diet for three months in order to return back his normal weight.^[71] When Maradona resumed public appearances shortly thereafter, he displayed a notably thinner figure.^[72]

On 29 March 2007, Maradona was readmitted to a hospital in Buenos Aires. He was treated for hepatitis and effects of alcohol abuse, and was released on 11 April, but re-admitted two days later.^[73] In the following days there were constant rumors about his health, including three false claims of his death within a month.^[74] After transfer to a psychiatric clinic specialising in alcohol-related problems, he was discharged on 7 May.^[75]