Cocaine, strong appetite for women ruined legendary Bjorn Borg

• Former Swedish tennis player Bjorn Borg ruled tennis in the 70s and the 80s
• Borg worn 11 Grand Slam titles in his tennis career
• Six of these were French Open titles

Former Swedish tennis player Bjorn Borg ruled tennis in the 70s and the 80s but cocaine and a huge appetite for women nearly ruined him.

Borg won 11 Grand Slam titles in his tennis career. Six of these were French Open titles and the other five were Wimbledon titles. He was the king of clay and grass courts which earned him a lot of admiration by tennis fans globally. The Swedish held a commanding record against some of the top players of his day, such as John McEnroe, in their head-to-head matches. Over his career, Borg’s attained an astounding 83% career wins.

His strong and topspin-heavy groundstrokes, especially his two-handed backhand sent shivers of fear among his opponents. Double this with his mental strength which allowed him to stay calm while under pressure – he was a lethal opponent. However, his other life was chaotic and he never had control of it.

Bjorn Borg Struggle With Cocaine

BJORN BORG. Photo/BBC Partners

Beyond his successful career, Bjorn Borg had a bigger inner demon which he would only put to rest by snorting cocaine. It was such an addiction that he spent most of his time off-court using it. He later confessed in an interview that he was never a loyal user but he had his moments ‘trying it out’.

“I’ve tried cocaine but I’m not a cocaine user,” he confessed.  However, one of his ex-wives, singer/actress Loredana Berte said Borg was a cocaine addict but he always denied it. His love for the white powder made him do all manner of things without any care in the world.

Berte opened up to Francesca Fagnani on Belve de Rai 2 that Borg stopped caring about her as a wife and was only bothered by his next dose of the drug.

“I never understood why he did it. Cocaine addiction played a part in our break-up, at one point in the relationship he preferred cocaine to me and I couldn’t accept it,” she said.

In her autobiography “Traslocando,” Berte, met Borg in 1988 while on vacation in Ibiza, disclosed that he suffered from a terrible cocaine addiction. Because of cocaine, he allowed McEnroe to win Wimbledon in 1981.

Bjorn Borg Troubled Relationships

Bjorn Borg had three failed marriages and a dozen relationships that failed terribly just like his marriages. Mariana Simionescu who was also a tennis player was his first wife who he married in 1980 when he was the peak of his career. They met in Paris in 1976 and dated for four years before walking down the aisle but this was the beginning of a troubled life. Borg’s cocaine addiction finally separated them despite being together for years and globe-trotting to various tennis tournaments.

“He was taking cocaine and thought to come back to play tennis. For a short time, we went to live in London. He didn’t want to have s3x; he couldn’t bang me,” she revealed.

Still, Mariana says that he remains his true love.

Bjorn Borg with his first ex-wife Mariana Simionescu. Photo/The Mirror

When Did Bjorn Borg Marry Loredana Berte?

Unfazed, Bjorn Borg married Berte in 1989 and he did not change his ways. Cocaine was the only thing he cared about and this led to their separation in 1993. Much worse was that he had developed a strong appetite for twilight girls and brothels became his second home as Berte narrates.

“Borg was very lost in the brothels he frequented. I hadn’t seen him for two days,” she narrates in her autobiography.

“I left him too late, in 1992, I should have done it earlier. With Borg I lost my feelings and the money in the bank. I always paid, because multimillionaires never have money in their pockets.”

Who Else Did Bjorn Borg Date?

The 11-time Grand Slam champion also dated Italian rock star Sophia Loren for a while but she dumped him for infidelity. He invited two call girls to their hotel room in Palm Beach and asked them to come with whips to spice things up. Loren was opposed to this but Borg wanted to have his fun besides his usual cocaine party and this led to their separation.

“When he returned to the hotel, he phoned and asked for two prostitutes: they came dressed in leather and with whips and he told me that we should go to another level with s3x. I hit him and left, and when we returned to Milan I didn’t let him in the house. From that day on, it was over,” she revealed.