CELEBRITY
Maradona fans remember troubled soccer great a year after his death
Thousands of fans of soccer great Diego Maradona will pay tribute to the star on the one-year anniversary of his death, amid legal wrangles about how he died and allegations over past relationships that threaten to tarnish his legacy.
The Argentine world champion, known as ‘Pelusa’ for his once flowing mane and ‘D10S’ – a play on the word for ‘God’ in Spanish and his famous no. 10 jersey – died on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60 due to cardiac arrest.
Born in a humble neighborhood on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, Maradona became an icon to many in Argentina and around the world. He was a cult hero in Napoli, Italy, where he helped drive an underdog team to domestic and European glory.
The player has been immortalized with murals and statues, as well as tattoos. Children – boys and girls – have been named after him.
“Diego made us feel so many things,” Ezequiel Rossi, a 34-year-old teacher in Argentina, told Reuters this week.
“It was wonderful, seeing this kid who started with nothing and suddenly had everything. He made us dream and imagine that we could also do great things.”
Maradona’s personal life was controversial, marked by excesses with drugs and alcohol, multiple children, and friendships with strong-men leaders, including Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Fidel Castro in Cuba.
This week a Cuban woman who had an affair with Maradona two decades ago, when she was 16 and he around 40, accused the star of “stealing her childhood” and on one occasion of raping her.
“I can’t justify what he did in many areas of his life,” said Alejandro Sterli, a 61-year-old shooting instructor. “That’s why I try to separate the player from the human being.”
Italian club Napoli, which he led to Serie A titles in 1987 and 1990, will play three November games wearing shirts with black and white images of a young Maradona. Two of his other clubs, Barcelona and Boca Juniors, will compete in a ‘Maradona Cup.’
For many, Thursday will be a day of sadness.
“That day is the worst day of my life,” Dalma Maradona, one of his daughters, recently said on Instagram. “I feel that this day is not to honor or commemorate, much less celebrate.”
-Reuters
Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first footballer to reach billionaire status, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which has valued the Portugal great’s net worth at an estimated $1.4 billion.
The 40-year-old striker’s financial ascent comes after he signed a new contract with Saudi side Al-Nassr in June reportedly worth more than $400 million.
Bloomberg said that Ronaldo earned more than $550 million in salary between 2002 and 2023, supplemented by a decade-long Nike deal worth nearly $18 million annually, and lucrative endorsements with Armani, Castrol and others that added more than $175 million to his fortune.
Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr from Manchester United in 2023 had already made him the highest-paid player in football history, with an annual salary of 177 million pounds ($237.52 million), plus bonuses and a reported 15% share in his Saudi Arabia club.
Argentina and Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi has earned more than $600 million in pre-tax salary during his career.
Ronaldo’s billionaire status places him among a rare group of athletes that includes basketball greats Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and LeBron James, golfer Tiger Woods and tennis player Roger Federer.
Ronaldo suggested he is not considering retirement any time soon.
“I still have a passion for this,” he said at the Portugal Football Globes gala on Tuesday. “My family says it’s time to quit and they ask me why I want to score 1000 goals if I’ve already scored 900-something. But I don’t think that way inside.
“I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team. Why not continue? I am sure that when I finish I will leave full because I gave everything of myself. I know I don’t have many years left to play, but the few I have left, I have to enjoy them to the fullest.”
-Reuters
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Former England soccer captain David Beckham and actor Gary Oldman were knighted in King Charles’ annual birthday honours list on Saturday, while sculptor Antony Gormley was made a Companion of Honour.
Beckham, 50, joined Manchester United as a trainee in 1993, going on to make almost 400 appearances for the club where he won a string of titles and cups.
He subsequently played for Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, and Inter Milan, as well as captaining his country 58 times and making 115 appearances.
His marriage to fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham in 1999 cemented a celebrity status which went far beyond his sporting exploits.
Oldman, 67, started his career on the stage, where he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, before rising to prominence in film. He won the best actor Oscar for playing Winston Churchill in the 2017 drama “Darkest Hour”.
He also had roles in the “Dark Knight Trilogy” and the “Harry Potter” movie series and more recently starred in the TV spy drama “Slow Horses”.
Other famous names receiving honours included damehoods for musical theatre star Elaine Paige, novelist Pat Barker and ceramics maker Emma Bridgewater.
Roger Daltrey, lead singer of rock band the Who and a patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, received a knighthood for services to charity.
More than 1,200 people received honours for their achievements, with a particular focus on those who had given their time to public service, the government said.
King Charles’ official birthday will be celebrated with the annual “Trooping the Colour” military parade in London on Saturday. His actual birthday is on November 14
-Reuters
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One of three judges in Diego Maradona’s closely scrutinized homicide trial in Argentina resigned on Tuesday amid a scandal triggered by the alleged filming of an unauthorised documentary, bringing uncertainty to the future of legal proceedings.
The high-profile trial over the death of soccer star Maradona began on March 11 in the South American country where the World Cup winner is still revered.
-Reuters
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