Diego Maradona

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Diego Jr.'s football journey began young, emulating his father's skills. At 11, he was part of the Napoli youth squad and later represented Italy at under-17 level. In 2004, he joined Genoa's youth squad for a season. His first-team debut came in 2005 with Cervia, an Eccellenza team featured on a national football reality show, *Campioni - Il sogno*. He then moved through several clubs in Eccellenza and Serie D, including Internapoli, Quarto (with whom he won the Eccellenza playoffs in 2006–07 and was promoted to Serie D), Venafro (scoring his first goal for them from 30 metres on 21 January 2008), Boys Caivanese, Juve Stabia, and Arzanesse. On 29 April 2008, he joined the Italy national beach soccer team for FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup qualification. He debuted on 12 May against Greece, helping Italy qualify. He scored six goals in three matches for his beach soccer club, Mare di Roma, convincing the Italy coach to include him in the 2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup squad. Italy placed second, losing 5–3 in the final to Brazil; Maradona scored two goals in the competition, including one in the final. In 2009, he signed with Napoli Beach Soccer, scoring eight goals to help them win the Italian beach soccer championship for the first time.

In Their Own Story

The pitch was sand, not grass, but the name on the back of the jersey was the same: Maradona. It was the 2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup final, and Italy was facing Brazil. The crowd was a wall of noise. Diego Jr., the son of the Argentine legend, had already scored once in the tournament. Now, with Italy trailing, he received the ball, the sand shifting under his feet. He struck it cleanly, finding the back of the net. It wasn't enough to win the trophy—Brazil took it 5–3—but for a player who had been legally recognized by his father only a year prior, and who had met him for the first time just five years earlier, scoring on that stage was a statement. He had made his own mark, not in the shadow of his father's World Cup, but on the beaches of the world.

Reader's Guide

Diego Maradona Jr. is a football coach and former player, currently managing Eccellenza amateurs Portici as of 5 November 2025. His playing career spanned amateur leagues in Italy and professional beach soccer. He began his first-team career in 2005 with Cervia in the Eccellenza division. He played for multiple Eccellenza and Serie D clubs, including Quarto (with whom he won the Eccellenza playoff in 2006–07), Venafro, and Boys Caivanese. In beach soccer, he played for A.S.D. Mare di Roma and Napoli Beach Soccer, winning the Italian championship with the latter in 2009. He represented Italy at the 2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, finishing as runner-up and scoring two goals in the tournament. His coaching career began in July 2021 with Napoli United. He later managed Pompei, Montecalcio, Spanish Tercera Federación club Ibarra (guiding them to a promotion playoff spot before the club dissolved in July 2025), and was appointed head coach of Portici on 5 November 2025.

Did You Know?

• Diego Maradona Jr. was born in Naples, Italy, on 20 September 1986, the result of an out-of-wedlock affair between his father and a local woman named Cristiana Sinagra.
• He was legally recognized as Diego Maradona's son by the Court of Naples in 1993, but did not meet his father until 2003 at a golf tournament in Fiuggi.
• He scored two goals for Italy in the 2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, including one in the final against Brazil, which Italy lost 5–3.
• In 2009, he helped Napoli Beach Soccer win the Italian beach soccer championship for the first time in its history, scoring eight goals.