Diego Armando Maradona

This contribution examines the figure of Diego Armando Maradona as a symbolic construction and an identity-forming device in 1980s Naples. The champion’s arrival at SSC Napoli in 1984 occurred during a phase of profound socio-economic crisis marked by the aftermath of the earthquake and ongoing deindustrialisation, thereby acting as a catalyst for a process of collective identification. Through a historical and sociological analysis of the urban and footballing context, the essay interprets the “secular sainthood” attributed to Maradona as an expression of Southern redemption within the framework of the persistent North–South divide. The first league title in 1987 thus acquires a metapolitical significance, configuring itself as a symbolic victory against power structures perceived as hegemonic. The player’s charismatic dimension transcends the sporting sphere and consolidates into a global myth capable of fostering pride, belonging, and shared memory, notwithstanding an awareness of his biographical contradictions.