How Diego Maradona Fueled the Rise of Naples’ Camorra

When Argentine soccer wizard Diego Armando Maradona swapped Barcelona for lowly Napoli in 1984, it shocked the sporting world — and sent Naples’ deadly Camorra into overdrive. Corrupt from the very start, the move would send the world’s greatest player into a tailspin of drugs, sex and crime, even while his onfield performances won Napoli its first league in over six decades.

But as Maradona Mania gripped the Italian city, the star’s underworld friends realized how big a cash cow he was — and flooded Naples with drugs, smuggled cigarettes, guns and shady property deals. And it was right when Maradona was at his peak — an Italian league, and World Cup winner — that things really began to fall apart.

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