Here we are talking about Pele Died at 82. The three-time World Cup champion and Brazilian soccer legend Pelé, who rose to fame internationally and held the record for the highest team athlete salary, has passed away. He was 82. Kely Nascimento, his daughter, posted a notice of his passing on Instagram on Thursday.
As he got older, Pelé’s health became worse. In late December, medical staff at So Paulo’s Albert Einstein Hospital reported that he was receiving “elevated care” for “kidney and cardiac dysfunctions” brought on by cancer he had been battling for more than a year. He also developed a respiratory infection, and his family informed him that he would spend the Christmas break in the hospital.
A statement on his organization’s website stated, “Inspiration and affection marked the journey of King Pelé, who peacefully passed away today.” “Edson delighted the world with his brilliance for sport while traveling, put an end to war, did humanitarian work all over the world, and propagated what he thought was the answer to all of our problems: love. Future generations will be left with a legacy of his words from today.
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On October 23, 1940, Edson Arantes do Nascimento was born. He was almost solely referred to as Pelé, a moniker he allegedly acquired after mispronouncing the name of another football player. As an inside forward, Pelé signed with the Santos Football Club in Brazil in 1956 when he was 15 years old. The team won the So Paulo league titles and the Libertadores Cup and Intercontinental Club Cup in 1962 and 1963.
In 1957, a year after joining Santos, the forward, who played as a second striker, made his international debut. The following year, at age 17, he participated in the World Cup as the youngest player. He scored three goals against France in the semifinals, and two against Sweden, the host nation of the 1958 competition. Brazil labeled Pelé a “national treasure” after he made his debut in the international arena and dazzled with his ability to make tough saves to keep him from being signed by more financially secure European teams.
Santos instead embarked on a global tour to give fans a chance to see the celebrity. The Brazilian national team won back-to-back championships in 1962 despite Pelé missing the tournament’s first two games due to a torn muscle. The following World Cup, in 1966, saw Brazil lose in the first round when Pelé and other players became hurt. He thought about giving up the international competition but triumphantly returned in 1970 to win it again.
The only soccer player to have won the World Cup three times is Pelé, who finished his career with 12 goals in 14 games. After amassing a mind-boggling 643 goals in 659 appearances, Pelé left Santos in 1974. A year later, the New York Cosmos convinced him to come out of retirement and join them. The New York Times stated that he became the highest-paid team athlete in the world when he signed a three-year, $7 million contract to play for the American team at the age of 34.
He ultimately spent two seasons with the Cosmos, during which time he helped them win the North American Soccer League championship. He is highly recognized for having contributed to the growth of American soccer. The exhibition game between Santos and the Cosmos was his final ever contest. He played with the Cosmos in the first half and his beloved Santos in the second. Pelé’s teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders as the clock ran out and carried him around the field.
Forty years after that final match, Shep Messing, a goalie with the Cosmos, told ESPN that Pelé “basically made soccer cool.” Robert Redford, Elton John, and Mick Jagger attended the games. At the time of that last match, Muhammad Ali was present on the field with the other two most well-known individuals on the globe. Pelé scored more than 1,000 goals throughout his career, setting a Guinness World Record.
After retiring from soccer, he used his platform to promote charitable causes and fight to better the conditions of the impoverished in Brazil. In 1994, he was appointed a global UNESCO ambassador and worked as Brazil’s minister of sport. He also authored numerous best-selling autobiographies, appeared in biographical documentaries and published several.
He and Diego Maradona, a star from Argentina younger than Pelé and competing after retirement, have frequently been cited as two of the greatest players in history. FIFA awarded them both “players of the century” in 2000. Despite their rivalry, the two became friends before Maradona passed away in 2020 after years of hurling insults.
I want to thank Pelé. We are aware of who he is and will always be. In 2016, Maradona stated during a friendly exhibition game, “We need icons like him. Pelé was finally hailed as the “best of all time” by FIFA in 2012 and the “athlete of the century” by the International Olympic Committee in 1999. Following the news of his passing on Thursday, condolences poured in from the soccer community.
Santos tweeted a reference to his moniker “O Rei” or “The King,” which he goes by. On social media, “The King” also received acclaim from Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo remarked, “A simple ‘goodbye’ to the ever-reigning King Pelé won’t adequately communicate the pain the football world is currently absorbing. “An inspiration to so many others, a reference from then until now.
Every time we spent together, even when we were apart, you showed me the same love that I always returned. He will never be forgotten, and every one of us football fans will always remember him. Pelé’s “legacy will never be forgotten,” according to France forward Kylian Mbappé, who scored a hat trick in the most recent World Cup final earlier this month in Qatar.
Former English footballer Geoff Hurst added, “Pele is undoubtedly the best player I have ever faced. I have so many memories of him. I was honored to share the field alongside Pele, who I still consider the best player in history. R.I.P. Pele
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