An inheritance without peace for Maradona

A life like Diego Maradona's could not end in peace: the funeral of the Argentine star was a chaos that put the integrity of the Argentine government headquarters at risk;

the private cemetery where he is buried needs permanent custody;

and the distribution of his inheritance is a soap opera where recognized children and not so much, ex-wives, girlfriends, ex-girlfriends, lawyers, friends and the occasional rogue who intends to fish in troubled rivers intersect.

Maradona has gone from the sports pages to those of the tabloid press.

The representatives of their descendants fight for a minute of screen in the afternoon programs, while cross complaints between the heirs occur.

Justice has prohibited the cremation of the deceased, pending new filiation demands.

The work of judges and lawyers will be arduous: no one knows with certainty how much the fortune accumulated by Maradona amounts to.

Nor do they know how many people will have to distribute it.

The player recognized five children in life, but there are two filiation procedures in the courts and four other possible blood heirs in Cuba, born during the years the player lived on the island to recover from his addictions.

The list of heirs is headed by Dalma Nerea and Gianinna Dinorah, born in 1987 and 1989 from Maradona's marriage to Claudia Villafañe.

They are the "official" daughters, the two names that the player had tattooed on his forearms.

Villafañe was Diego's protector for years, took care of his property and accompanied him in the most difficult moments of his life, when addictions had him on the brink of death.

But that is past history.

Before and after Claudia, Maradona had several more children.

In 2016 he recognized Diego Sinagra Maradona, better known as Diego Maradona Jr., born in Naples 32 years ago from a relationship with the Italian Cristina Sinagra.

In 2014, the player recognized Jana, born in 1996 also to an Italian couple, Valeria Sabalain.

In 2013, Diego Fernando arrived, son of Verónica Ojeda, whom he left pregnant to form a new couple with Rocío Oliva, his last stable relationship.

These five children can be joined by several more.

The Cubans Javielito, Lu, Johanna and Harold, now between 19 and 21 years old, assure that Maradona is their father.

Also Santiago Lara, 19, and Magalí Gil, 24. The last two have requested DNA tests and managed to prevent the cremation of the body.

Some time ago, Maradona's lawyer and friend, Matías Morla, assured that Diego was willing to give his last name to all who confirmed to be of the same blood.

“He is very respectful of the right to identity, with the issue of letting them know if he is a son or not.

I think by now the sequence of who his children are is closed.

If Justice recognizes a new son, it would be necessary to see what bond it forms ”, he said.

His death will prevent the creation of those new links, such as those he achieved with all those he recognized as his own.

During his later years, however, relations were not good.

In November last year, in the heat of one of the many intra-family fights, Maradona threatened to donate his entire fortune.

“I tell everyone that I am not going to leave anything for them, that I am going to donate it.

I'm going to donate everything that I ran in my life, ”he bellowed then.

The tension then eased, but it wasn't the same anymore.

Maradona tried unsuccessfully to reunite all his children for his 60th birthday, on October 30.

His environment ensures that the frustration over that failed meeting plunged him into a severe depression, from which he could not recover.

In this environment of underground battles, the heirs will fight for the fortune of the deceased father.

It will not be easy for the judges to determine how much there is to hand out.

Maradona earned a lot, but he also spent a lot.

When he died, he had a case against Claudia Villafañe, whom he denounced for tax evasion, procedural fraud and misappropriation of 458 objects that were part of his belongings in his past as a soccer player.

Diego always maintained that Villafañe had kept money that did not belong to him.

But how much did Maradona leave behind?

Argentine law ensures two-thirds of the deceased's assets for the children, whatever their desire.

The remaining third can be distributed by will or donated while living.

That's what Maradona did.

Mauricio D'Alessandro, Matías Morla's lawyer, gave clues about the complexity of the task that awaits the judicial experts.

“There are no properties in Diego Armando Maradona's estate.

There are donations for inheritance advance and donations because Diego wanted it, with respect to some assets that in principle would be within a third of the patrimony.

He has donated property to relatives in the ascending and descending line and to siblings.

It has covered many of the forced and some of the non-forced heirs.

Also ex-partners.

There is no one who has passed through the surroundings of Maradona, having any intimate closeness, who has not gotten along well ”, he explained.

The rest is already more complex to determine.

There are four accounts abroad in the player's name and shares for 0.5% of the Dinamo Brest club of Belarus, an institution that named the Argentine as its honorary president in 2018. “It has no concrete valuation by any international company.

But if the heirs get all together and talk to the owner of the club, it is likely that they will obtain a figure several times a million, "said D'Alessandro.

And he revealed an unusual investment: “There is a company that has slot machines with Maradona's face on it.

The company was from the United States and now German.

It has 100,000 slot machines spread across Europe.

That pays a 5% royalty. "

To these businesses must be added investments in Venezuela, through a company that negotiated the purchase and sale of cereals that Caracas paid with oil.

Maradona also collected royalties from two clothing companies in the United States and one in the United Kingdom.

A fourth company, in partnership with Morla, controls the Diego Maradona, Diego and El Diez brands.

While in Dubai, the player wrote that these brands should keep his sisters for life.

Much has been said in addition to the high-end cars Maradona had around the world, such as a Rolls Royce in Dubai and an amphibious vehicle that he received as a gift in Belarus.

In Argentina, meanwhile, Maradona left three BMWs and a high-end pickup truck that will add to their market value having belonged to Maradona.

The Argentine press released during the week the discovery of a container that is unknown what is inside.

The lawyer D'Alessandro said that inside there are about 200 objects "of great sentimental value for the heirs."

“There is the suit that was made for Dalma's wedding, which she never used.

He has those kinds of issues that can be valuable to the family, "he explained.

Distributing the memory of Maradona will be a long process, which will include DNA tests, fights and, above all, a lot of media noise.

Impossible to resist such a story.