By Paul Kennedy, Managing Editor
Soccer America Magazine
HUMAN CHESS
In a battle of world champions, Diego Maradona took on blindfolded Russian grandmaster Anatoly Karpov (right) in a game of human chess on MaradonaÆs hit talk show ''La Noche del 10.'' The game ended in a draw.
ABRAMOVICHÆs BILLIONS
Chelsea owner gets richer
What does a man who has everything do?
ThatÆs the question everyone is asking after Russian tycoon Roman AbramovichÆs latest business deal.
Abramovich, best known as the owner of English club Chelsea, has emerged as the big winner in the high-stakes world of Russian energy.
Russian state gas company Gazprom bought oil firm Sibneft, in which he held a majority interest, for $13 billion.
Sibneft was supposed to end up in the hands of Mikhail KhodorkovskyÆs YUKOS, but the deal collapsed two years ago after Khodorkovsky, considered a potential challenger to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was arrested at gunpoint and jailed.
Abramovich, who is the governor of the icy region of Chukotka, across the Bering Strait from Alaska, has been much better at navigating the shady world of Russian politics than Khodorkovsky, who remains jailed after his conviction on fraud and tax evasion charges.
''Everything his hands touch turns into crisp notes,'' Forbes wrote prophetically of Abramovich earlier this year, when his wealth was estimated at $14.7 billion.
About $3 billion of that money was in cash ù from Sibneft dividend payments and the sale of AbramovichÆs aluminum firm Rusal. Only 38, Abramovich is expected to receive about $9 billion for his stake in Sibneft. His cash position of roughly $12 billion makes him one of the richest men in the world.
Abramovich was orphaned as a child and grew up in Ukhta, about 800 miles northeast of Moscow. He sold toys and household goods in Moscow before entering the oil business in the 1990s.
AbramovichÆs extravagance is legendary.
He paid more than $200 million to take control of Chelsea and has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the transfer market, making Chelsea the dominant team in England. The Blues won their first league title in 50 years last season and were so far ahead after seven games this season that one Irish bookmaker started paying off bets that they will win the 2006 Premier League title.
Abramovich owns a $50 million mansion in LondonÆs Belgravia, as well as a 440-acre country estate in West Sussex.
AbramovichÆs collection of yachts is one of the most expensive in the world.
The Pelorus and Escasea cost $130 million each. Le Grand Bleu was a bargain at $72 million, and another boat is being built at a cost of $180 million.
Abramovich made headlines this summer when he had to cancel a family vacation because the wrong fuel was pumped into the Pelorus, the fifth largest yacht in the world. The error cost more than $200,000 in refueling expenses. The Ecstasea is accompanied by a submarine that serves as a mine sweeper. Le Grand Bleu has a helipad.
Abramovich also owns two private jets purchased at a cost of $150 million and used, it is said, to bring him sushi take-out from his favorite Japanese restaurant in London while traveling the world.
ROMANOÆS RESCUE
Rare victory for police
The rescue of kidnapped Cruz Azul coach Ruben Omar Romano was a hailed as a victory for MexicoÆs Federal police in the fight against rampant abductions.
Romano spent two months blindfolded and in a house in the crime-ridden Mexico City neighborhood of Iztapalapa before being rescued by an elite anti-kidnapping team of Federal agents.
Kidnapping is commonplace in Mexico, but the taking of the Argentine Romano received national attention.
Kidnappers often work with corrupt state and local police, but Federal police are regarded as more effective. They had little contact with RomanoÆs kidnappers, who were demanding $5 million, but used phone taps to track down the kidnappers, who were led by a criminal gang member who orchestrated the kidnapping from jail.
Police dressed in black combat gear stormed a three-story house in Iztapalapa and found Romano tied to a bed. The kidnappers put up no resistance, and seven were arrested.
After being seized by gunmen on July 19 near Cruz AzulÆs practice field outside Mexico City, Romano spent two months in captivity. He says he was treated well, being given food, soda, coffee and cigarettes.
''I hope all the Mexicans begin to believe in these people, who have done a great job,'' the chain-smoking Romano, said of the Federal agents at a news conference after his release on Sept. 22.
Mexican police have a huge problem with crime and drug trafficking.
A crackdown in Mexico City, based on former New York mayor Rudolph GiulianiÆs policy of ''zero tolerance,'' hasnÆt stopped carjackings.
In the major cities along the border with the United States, Mexican police are engaged in a major fight with drug traffickers. More than 1,000 Mexicans have been killed in incidents related to drug trafficking in 2005.
Romano returned to work at Cruz Azul, one of the richest clubs in Mexico, and said he had no intention of leaving the country.
''It never even crossed my mind,'' he said after being released. ''In no moment did my family have that thought. I think this was a bad experience and that is all.''
CISSEÆS POSE
French star poses nude
The fashion-conscious Djibril Cisse has made a new statement.
The French star appears nude in the 2006 calendar published by the French rugby club Stade Francais.
The French newspaper Le Parisien carried the naked picture of the Liverpool star showing his back and side as he balanced a soccer ball on his heavily tattooed right thigh.
Cisse, 24, regularly turns head with his numerous hairdos and launched his own brand of clothing. He joined Liverpool last year from French club Auxerre and returned from a broken leg to help the Reds win the 2005 Champions League title. HeÆs expressed his unhappiness about his role this season at Anfield and may be moved during the January transfer window.
The annual Stade Francais calendar is a big seller. It launched the calendar with its naked players in 2000. Last yearÆs calendar had a circulation of 240,000.
This article originally appeared in the October 17, 2005 issue of Soccer America Magazine.