“Maradona started dying 12 hours before his actual death,” said the prosecutor in the new trial over the Argentine’s death.
Published April 15, 2026
The medical team of soccer legend Diego Maradona was a “group of amateurs” who missed a chance to save his life, Argentine prosecutors said at the start of a new trial into his death.
The trial of seven medical workers accused of negligence in Mr Maradona’s death resumed on Tuesday, nearly a year after the original trial collapsed when the presiding judge resigned after appearing in a documentary about the case.
Maradona, considered one of the world’s best soccer players, died in November 2020 at the age of 60 while recovering from surgery for a brain blood clot. His medical team has been accused of gross negligence in causing his death while he was being treated at home.
The first trial was sensationally canceled after two and a half months of hearings after it was revealed that one of the judges had taken part in a secret documentary about the case.
Prosecutor Patricio Ferrari grilled the defendants at the start of the new trial.
He said Mr Maradona was cared for by a “group of amateurs” who committed “all sorts of omissions”, resulting in “cruel” conditions.
“Diego Maradona actually started dying 12 hours before he died. Anyone who thought in the last week to transport him by car or ambulance to the clinic would have saved his life,” Ferrari added.
Maradona died two weeks after the surgery due to heart failure and acute pulmonary edema, a buildup of fluid in his lungs.
The former Boca Juniors and Napoli striker, who captained Argentina to the World Cup in 1986, had a history of cocaine and alcohol abuse.
diego’s justice
Mr Maradona’s daughters Dalma, Gianinna and Jana, as well as his ex-partner Veronica Ojeda, also appeared in a packed courtroom in San Isidro, a northern suburb of Buenos Aires, as proceedings began.
Ojeda told reporters that he trusts the judiciary to ensure justice is served.
“That’s what we all need: justice for Diego. We want to live in peace and let Diego rest in peace,” she said.
Outside the courthouse, about 50 people holding Argentine flags and signs demanded justice for Maradona’s No. 10 jersey and the “D10”, a play on the Spanish word “dios” for god.
The new trial is expected to conclude in July at the earliest and is expected to hear from around 120 witnesses.
The defendants, including a doctor, psychologist and nurse, are charged with intentional homicide over decisions regarding Mr Maradona’s treatment, knowing that his actions could result in his death.
This includes the decision to allow people to receive treatment at home rather than in hospital.
If convicted, they risk eight to 25 years in prison.
Dalma and Gianinna Maradona’s lawyer, Fernando Burlando, displayed a stethoscope as a symbol of the doctors’ negligence.
“This small device, which is of great medical importance, was never placed on Maradona’s chest between November 11 and 25,” he said.
The defendants argued that Mr. Maradona died of natural causes.
“The defense will unfortunately have to prove that Mr. Maradona’s death was due to a progressive deterioration of his health, which at some point reached a breaking point,” said Vadim Mishanchuk, representing psychiatrist Agustina Kosachev.
The death of the player, who was revered for his supernatural talent and charisma, plunged Argentina into mourning in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tens of thousands of people lined up to bid farewell to him as his body was laid to rest in the presidential palace.
