It was the first time that a team from Southern Italy has won the league and further boosted the legendary status of Maradona, after his World Cup winning exploits the previous summer in the 1986 World Cup. After a period of decline brought upon by financial troubles and the departure of star players such as Gianfranco Zola and Daniel Fonseca, Napoli were declared bankrupt in 2004. They were reformed by Aurelio De Laurentiis as Napoli Soccer and fought their way back through the leagues, custom soccer jersey regaining Serie A status and even restoring their history when De Laurentiis stuck a deal with the liquidators.