Five years after his death, Diego Maradona’s family demand justice

There’s no disputing that Diego Maradona was one of the world’s greatest footballers. But it’s still hotly debated whether or not the Argentine star’s death, five years ago this week, could have been prevented.

Maradona’s family believes it should have been. They are “demanding justice so that he can rest in peace”, said El País. A second trial of seven health professionals, accused of negligent homicide relating to the former footballer’s death at the age of 60, will begin in March, after the first trial dramatically collapsed earlier this year.

Died ‘practically alone’

Maradona, captain of Argentina’s 1986 World Cup-winning team, died in a rented house just outside Buenos Aires on 25 November 2020. He was recovering from surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain. “The news that his heart had stopped beating plunged Argentina into collective grief,” said El País.

“No one was prepared,” said CNN. In Argentina, the pain was “atrocious”. His death “managed to unite in desolation a country deeply divided”. Hundreds of thousands attended his funeral, in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Adults cried like children”, and the sounds of their weeping mixed with the noise of disturbances – “shouts from the police and hooligans”. His funeral “resembled his life: it was chaos”.

Maradona had “dodged death so many times” during decades of cocaine and alcohol addiction. He seemed to have “indestructible genetics”. But “one of the most famous human beings on the planet” died “practically alone, under medical care that is suspected of being, at the very least, deficient”.

Seven doctors and nurses were accused of “homicide with possible intent”: pursuing a course of action despite knowing it could lead to the patient’s death. Prosecutors alleged that the medical attention Maradona received was grossly negligent. Gianinna Maradona, one of his daughters, said the doctors had promised “serious home care” but what ensued was “a disastrous charade”.

‘Treated like an animal’

The case against the medical team centres on the decision to allow Maradona to recuperate from brain surgery at home “with minimal supervision and medical equipment, instead of a medical facility”, said The Guardian.

The original trial “exposed chilling claims about the footballer’s death”, said The Sun, including allegations that he was “treated like an animal” by his medics. Chief prosecutor Patricio Ferrari said Maradona spent his last days in a “house of horror”. He “shocked the room” with a “grim” photo of Maradona “lying on his back with his bloated stomach exposed”.

The post-mortem report concluded that Maradona had died from acute pulmonary oedema secondary to an acute exacerbation of chronic heart failure. His heart, the court was told, weighed “more than twice the normal size.”

Maradona had suffered at least 12 hours of extreme pain before dying, one of the experts who performed the post-mortem examination told the court. His heart “was completely covered with fat and blood clots, which indicate agony”, said forensic medic Carlos Cassinelli. He had “been collecting water” for days; this was “something foreseeable. Any doctor examining a patient would find this.”

But, months in, the trial dramatically collapsed in scandal. One of the three judges had secretly authorised recordings of legal proceedings for “Divine Justice”, a documentary about the case that would feature her as the star. Julieta Makintach recused herself, and the two remaining judges chose to annul the trial rather than replace her. This month, Makintach was fired and disqualified from holding any judicial position in the future.

The defendants, who deny all the accusations, will stand trial again in March. If they are found guilty, they face a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.

Maradona continues to captivate Argentina. Banks have issued a special silver coin ahead of the 2026 World Cup, commemorating his so-called “Goal of the Century” against England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup.