Italian club Napoli have renamed their San Paolo stadium Diego Armando Maradona Stadium after the late Argentine legend Maradona, who led them to two Serie A titles and the UEFA Cup. Those were the only two Series titles won by the club. The decision was approved by the Napoli City Council after it was proposed by Naples mayor Luigi de Magistris. Maradona died last week after suffering from a heart attack.
In an interview to SKY in Italy, Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis said, “I've been in talks with local authorities for the past 17 years, I've always asked to buy the stadium and rename it 'Diego Armando Maradona'. If then, for tradition, we will need to call it both 'San Paolo' and 'Maradona' so be it. It won't change much, but it's only right that Maradona has this recognition. Even if we were to build a whole new stadium, I would name it like that”.
Maradona scripted history with Napoli, taking them to two Serie A titles and a UEFA Cup. It was at this time at Napoli that he led Argentina to their World Cup win in 1986. He scored 115 goals over the course of seven years at the club. Maradona has another stadium named after him in Buenos Aires, Argentina – Estadio Diego Armando Maradona. The name was given in 2004 in honour of Maradona who made his professional debut in 1976 at the stadium. It is now home to Argentine club Argentinos Juniors.