Pelé, A Brazilian soccer star who won a record-tying three World Cups, passed away at age 82. Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend who set ...
Pelé, A Brazilian soccer star who won a record-tying three World Cups, passed away at age 82.
Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend who set a record by winning three World Cups, passed away on Thursday. Pelé was one of the most influential athletes of the 20th century. He was 82.
The representative of "the beautiful game" had been receiving colon cancer therapy since 2021. According to the hospital where he had spent the previous month receiving treatment for the cancer, he passed away from multiple organ failure.
"Pelé rewrote history. He turned football into a type of entertainment and art "Another Brazilian soccer star, Neymar, stated on Instagram. "Brazil and football both improved thanks to the King! He is no longer there, but his magic lives on. Pelé never dies!"
His casket was to be carried through the streets of Santos, the coastal city where his illustrious career began, before burial. The funeral was scheduled for Monday and Tuesday.
One of soccer's all-time greats, Pelé spent nearly two decades thrilling supporters and stunning rivals as the sport's leading scorer for Brazilian club Santos and the Brazil national team.
Players and spectators were mesmerized by his grace, athleticism, and captivating maneuvers. He orchestrated a quick, flowing style that transformed the game, personifying his nation's grace on the field with a samba-like flair.
Soccer legend Pelé, who at the age of 17 helped Brazil win its first World Cup, passed away at the age of 82. Following a stellar career in which he won two more World Cups and completely changed the men's game, Pelé went on to become a politician, a wealthy businessman, and the UN's ambassador for UNESCO.
In a career that started on the streets of Sao Paulo state, where he would kick a sock filled with newspapers or rags, he led Brazil to the pinnacles of soccer and developed into a global ambassador for his sport.
Only the late Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo are listed with Pelé when discussing the greatest soccer players.
During a World Cup Round of 16 match between Brazil and South Korea at Stadium 974 in early December in Doha, Qatar, supporters of Pelé hold a banner in his honor. (Getty Images/Lars Baron)
There are various sources that show Pelé's goal totals as ranging from 650 (league games) to 1,281 (including other sets of games) (all senior matches, some against low-level competition.)
At the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, the man who would come to be known as "The King" made his debut as the youngest player ever. He was only 17 years old. After contributing two goals to Brazil's 5-2 triumph against the host nation in the championship game, he was carried off the field on the shoulders of his teammates.
When Brazil defended its world championship in 1962, he was only able to play in two games due to injury, but Pelé was the face of his nation's World Cup victory in Mexico in 1970. He assisted Carlos Alberto with a carefree ball for the final goal in a 4-1 triumph over Italy. He also scored in the championship.
For soccer fans everywhere, the picture of Pelé wearing a vivid yellow Brazil jersey with the No. 10 imprinted on the back will always be vivid. As well as his signature goal celebration, a leap with a raised right fist.
Due to Pelé's fame, Nigerian civil war groups agreed to a brief cease-fire in 1967 so that he could play an exhibition match there. In 1997, the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, knighted him. The U.S. president extended his hand first when he went to Washington to promote the game in North America.
The host introduced himself to his guest as "Ronald Reagan, I'm the President of the United States of America." Nevertheless, nobody needs an introduction because everyone is familiar with Pelé.
Pelé was the first Black national hero of contemporary Brazil, yet he seldom ever discussed racism in a society where the wealthy and powerful typically come from the white minority.
At home and abroad, Pelé was harassed with monkey chants by opposing supporters.
According to one of Pelé's biographers, Angelica Basthi, "He remarked that he would never play if he had to stop every time he heard those chants." He was never interested in carrying the flag, yet he is important for Black people's pride in Brazil.