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Paolo Rossi, the star of the Italian team that won the 1982 World Cup, has died at the age of 64.
The news was announced early Thursday by the Italian television channel RAI Sport, for whom Rossi had been working as an expert.
“Very sad news: Paolo Rossi left us,” RAI Sport host Enrico Varriale tweeted. “Unforgettable Pablito, who fell in love with all of us that summer of ’82 and who has been a valuable and competent co-worker at RAI in recent years. RIP dear Paolo “.
Rossi’s wife Cappelletti Federica posted a photo of her and her husband on her Instagram account along with the words “per semper” – “forever.”
She did not reveal the cause of his death.
The former Juventus and AC Milan player is widely regarded as one of the greatest forwards of all time and is most famous for his exploits at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.
Paolo Rossi scores the opening goal of the 1982 World Cup final. Photo: Steve Powell / Allsport
In the final, he scored the opening goal when Italy defeated West Germany 3-1. Early in the tournament, in what is still considered one of the best performances in the World Cup, he scored a hat-trick to beat Brazil 3-2 and send off one of the favorites early. Rossi won the Golden Boot and Ballon d’Or of the tournament and, that same year, the Ballon d’Or.
The fact that he was involved in the 1982 World Cup was due only to a reduction in the ban on match-fixing. Rossi was the highest paid player in the world when, in 1980, he was suspended for three years after it emerged that a 2-2 draw between Perugia, where he was on loan from Vicenza, and Avellino was fixed by a betting syndicate.
Rossi denied his involvement and his ban was commuted to two years. The then 25-year-old, who in the meantime had been bought out by Juventus, returned to the game two months before the tournament.
Rossi spent his entire club career in Italy, winning two Serie A titles and helping Juve reach the 1984 European Cup.
Tributes began to flow on social media, with Jürgen Klinsmann among the world’s soccer figures to share his condolences. “Dear Pablito, we always remember you!” tweeted.
Rossi is the second World Cup champion to die in the space of two weeks after the death of Argentine great Diego Maradona from a heart attack last month. – Guardian
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