Diego Maradona's £75m Estate Battle: Wild Love Life and Controversial Death

Diego Maradona's death at 60 in 2020 plunged his country and the football world into mourning.

What happened?

Diego 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.

Why it matters for Diego Maradona

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 negligent 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.

What comes next?

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. The retrial is ongoing, with the outcome still uncertain. Meanwhile, Maradona's wild love life has come under scrutiny, with reports of at least eight children with six different women. This has complicated the inheritance payouts following his death.

Maradona 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.

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 conducted.

The battle over Maradona's estate has been ongoing, with various individuals and organizations claiming a share of the inheritance. This has led to a complex and contentious situation, with many parties vying for a piece of the action.

In the end, the outcome of the retrial and the battle over Maradona's estate will have significant implications for his family, friends, and fans. The legacy of the football icon will be forever tied to the controversies surrounding his death and the disputes over his inheritance.

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