Brazil starts three days of national mourning on Friday for football legend Pele, the three-time World Cup winner widely regarded as the greatest player of all time, who has died at age 82.

The death of “The King” who transcended football triggered a wave of tributes around the globe from the sports world and also from political and cultural leaders.

Pele died Thursday at the Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paulo after a long battle with cancer.

“We love you infinitely. Rest in peace,” daughter Kely Nascimento wrote on Instagram.

The football world — from his former teammates to current stars — came together to honor “O Rei”, who transformed the sport during a long professional career that began when he was still a teenager.

Brazil star Neymar said Pele “transformed football into an art.” France’s Kylian Mbappe said his legacy “will never be forgotten,” and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo called him an “inspiration to millions.”

Argentina’s World Cup-winning captain Lionel Messi simply wrote: “Rest in peace.”

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who declared three days of national mourning, paid tribute to a man who “transformed football into art and joy”, while president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is due to take office Sunday, tweeted: “There had never been a number 10 like him.”

Pele is the only footballer in history to have won three World Cups — in 1958, 1962 and 1970.

He scored a world record 1,281 goals in 1,363 matches during a 21-year career.

He had been in increasingly fragile health, battling kidney problems and colon cancer — undergoing surgery for the latter in September 2021, followed by chemotherapy.

A wake will take place on Monday, followed by a funeral on Tuesday in Santos, the southeastern city where he played most of his career, his former club said.

The city declared seven days of mourning as fans flocked to the team’s stadium to leave flowers.

In front of the Sao Paulo hospital where he died, fans held up a banner which read: “Eternal King Pele.”

In Rio de Janeiro, the Christ the Redeemer statue which overlooks the city was illuminated in homage to Pele, as was the legendary Maracana stadium.

For the Brazilian daily O Globo, whose front page was packed with stories about the sporting legend, Pele remained the “immortal king of football”.

In a testament to Pele’s influence, international figures including US President Joe Biden and former leader Barack Obama, Brazilian music legends Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil, and International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach also paid tribute.

“As one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, he understood the power of sports to bring people together,” Obama wrote.

‘Samba football’

Born on October 23, 1940, in the southeastern city of Tres Coracoes, Edson Arantes do Nascimento — named for American inventor Thomas Edison — grew up selling peanuts on the street to help his impoverished family get by.

He was soon given the nickname Pele, for his mispronunciation of Bile, the name of a goalkeeper at Vasco de Sao Lourenco, where his footballer father once played.

Pele dazzled from the age of 15, when he started playing professionally with Santos. He led the club to a flurry of titles, including back-to-back Intercontinental Cups in 1962-1963.

He epitomized the Brazil national team’s sublime style of play, called “samba football.”

Pele set his scoring records playing for Santos (1956-74), the Brazilian national team, and the New York Cosmos (1975-77).

But beyond the many benchmarks he set, he will be remembered for revolutionizing the sport, his ever-present number 10 on his back as he tapped into his preternatural athleticism.

The first global football star, he played a lead role in making the game a sporting and commercial powerhouse.

He also played with heart, visible in the black-and-white footage of the 17-year-old bursting into tears after helping Brazil to its first World Cup title, in 1958.

Eight years earlier, seeing his father cry when Brazil lost the 1950 World Cup final on home soil to Uruguay, Pele had promised to bring the trophy home one day.

Sports royalty

Pele reached the pinnacle of his greatness at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, the first broadcast in color, where he starred on what many consider the greatest team of all time, with talents such as Rivellino, Tostao and Jairzinho.

He was often welcomed like royalty when traveling abroad with Santos or the national team. Legend has it that his arrival in Nigeria in 1969 prompted a 48-hour truce in the bloody Biafra war.

Pele declined offers to play in Europe but signed for a brief, lucrative swansong with the New York Cosmos at the end of his career, bringing his star power to the land of “soccer.”

His influence extended beyond the pitch, with gigs as a movie star, singer and sports minister (1995-1998) — he was one of the first black cabinet members in Brazil.

But he faced criticism at times in Brazil for remaining quiet on social issues and racism, and for what some saw as his haughty, vain personality.

Unlike Argentine rebel Diego Maradona, one of his rivals for the title of greatest of all time, Pele was seen as close to those in power — including Brazil’s 1964-1985 military regime.

‘Eternal, unforgettable’

Pele’s health began to fail in the last decade. His public appearances grew increasingly rare, and he frequently used a walker or wheelchair.

He was hospitalized several times for urinary infections, then again in 2021 and 2022 for the colon cancer that marked the beginning of the end.

He met his health problems with typical humor.

“I will face this match with a smile on my face,” he posted on Instagram in September 2021, after surgery to remove his colon tumor.

Mario Zagallo, who won the World Cup alongside Pele in 1958 and 1962, said the King had “stopped the world several times” with his talent.

“He leaves an eternal, unforgettable legacy,” the 91-year-old Zagallo said.

Source: AFP

Pele burst onto the global stage at just 17 with dazzling goals as Brazil won the World Cup for the first time in Sweden in 1958.

“I have good and bad stories from World Cups. The ’58 World Cup was a dream. I was a kid. Nobody was expecting it. Nobody believed in us. I remember some reporters saying: ‘how can they take a 17-year-old kid to the World Cup finals,” Pele recalled in an interview with FIFA.

As ever on the football field, Pele’s timing was impeccable.

While the 1954 World Cup had been broadcast live to a small European audience, 1958 was shown more widely and far more people owned television sets.

Pele, who crowned his career 12 years later in Mexico in the first World Cup broadcast in colour, was the first football star to play his entire career in the TV era.

In 1958, Brazil under coach Vicente Feola were also innovating.

They embraced the 4-2-4 formation and adopted a detailed approach to every aspect of preparation and planning.

The federation assigned a psychologist, Joao Carvalhaes, to the squad. He tested the players and pronounced Pele “too infantile”.

“You may be right,” Feola replied. “But you know nothing about football and I’ve seen Pele play.”

Pele, nursing a knee injury, missed the first two group games, a 3-0 win over Austria and the first goalless draw at a World Cup against England.

He made his debut against the USSR in the final group match.

The brilliant and unpredictable winger Garrincha was also recalled after being left out of the first two group matches.

Veteran defender Nilton Santos is said to have led a delegation of players to see Feola demanding he change the team.

Their recall altered the complexion of a side which had only contained one black player in the opening game.

Youngest scorer

In the first three minutes, Pele and Garrincha hit the woodwork and Vava scored. Vava added a second after the break as Brazil won 2-0 and secured first place in the group.

Pele made history in the 66th minute of the quarter-final scoring the only goal against Wales to become, at 17 years and 239 days, the youngest scorer in a World Cup.

He controlled the ball with his back to goal and Mel Charles marking him closely, flicked the ball toward goal with his right foot, spun and poked a shot through a challenge by Stuart Williams and in off the far post.

It was a goal fit to win a World Cup quarter-final, but because all the quarter-finals kicked off at the same time and the technology meant only one game could be shown live, it was not seen at the time by the global audience.

Pele hit the last three goals as Brazil beat France 5-2 in the semi-finals, pouncing on two loose balls in the goalmouth for a pair of well-taken poacher’s goals and completing his hat-trick with a stinging volley.

Just Fontaine scored for the losers and went on to finish the tournament with 13 goals.

“When I saw Pele play, it made me feel I should hang up my boots,” Fontaine said later.

Pele made his mark in the final on a Rasunda Stadium pitch made slippery by rain.

Although his play, behind centre forward Vava, epitomised the all-round attacking role associated with the modern number 10, he had that shirt only by accident. Despite their careful planning, the Brazilians had neglected to submit squad numbers and were assigned them at random. Goalkeeper Gilmar, for example, wore three.

Sweden took a fourth minute lead. Pele struck the woodwork. Then Garrincha twice beat his men on the right and hit low crosses for Vava to tap in.

In the 55th minute, Pele scored the third with a memorable flourish.

With the hulking Sigge Parling at his back, Pele leaped and twisted to control a ball into the penalty area. By the time he landed Parling was behind him.

‘Quick thinking’

As Bengt Gustavsson lunged in, Pele opted not to shoot, instead flicking the ball over the defender’s head.

Shrugging off a bootful of studs in his thigh, Pele composed himself as the ball dropped, from a height of 3.2 metres, FIFA have calculated, leant forward and bounced a volley under goalkeeper Kalle Svensson.

“If I said I thought about it, I’d be lying,” Pele told FIFA. “It was a spur-of-the moment reaction, quick thinking. When I controlled it I was going to hit it first time but then I thought quickly and adjusted. One of the strengths in my life and in my football was my improvisation, to change at the last second.”

In the final minute, Pele rounded off another 5-2 win, with a looping header that finished a one-two he had started with a backheel.

At the final whistle, Pele wept as teammates hoisted him in the air.

“After the fifth goal, even I wanted to cheer for him,” said Parling.

Fans watching round the world cheered too. King Gustav VI Adolf of Sweden came down to the pitch to shake Pele’s hand. Football’s king had been crowned.

Source:  AFP

When FIFA declared Pele and Diego Maradona jointly the players of the 20th century, and effectively the best of all time, they side-stepped but did not resolve a heated debate that has grown more complicated as Lionel Messi has dominated the 21st century.

Just who is the greatest?

Pele, who died on Thursday, and the two Argentines all won the sport’s greatest prize — the World Cup — and were undoubtedly the kings of their eras.

AFP Sport looks at who is the best between the magical Brazilian, the controversial Maradona, who passed away in November 2020 at the age of 60, and a second Argentine, the twinkling Messi who is still playing:

Triple crown v single titles

— Pele played in four World Cups, winning three times, a record not yet beaten and giving him one more than Maradona and Messi combined. He was just 17 in 1958 when he was world champion in Sweden, scoring six goals, two in the final. Pele was injured in the second match as Brazil won the 1962 World Cup but claimed a third title, and sealed his international reputation, in 1970 as his magical side beat Italy in the Mexico City final.

Maradona, not picked in the squad that won the World Cup at home in 1978 and sent off in a tournament-ending 3-1 loss to Brazil in Spain in 1982, shot to global fame in 1986 for the right and wrong reasons. His infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal against England was followed by an individual effort voted FIFA’s ‘Goal of the Century’. He scored twice in the semi-final win over Belgium and supplied the crucial pass in the 3-2 win against West Germany in the final.

After Messi completed his World Cup quest in Qatar this month, the ailing Pele saluted on Instagram: “Messi winning his first World Cup, as his trajectory deserved. Diego is certainly smiling.” The Argentine has a complete set of major medals: a World Cup (2022), a Copa America (2021), four Champions Leagues and three Club World Cups as well as a multitude of domestic Spanish and French trophies.

Number 10 v number 10 v number 10

— All three men wore the No 10 shirt.

Pele’s role was often described as a “nine and a half”, his attacking skills yielding 1,281 goals in 1,363 matches for his clubs, Santos and New York Cosmos, and the Brazilian national team.

Maradona, known as “D10S” (a word play with the number 10 and God in Spanish) played in a free role, more the playmaker, and his career statistics reflect that: 345 goals in 692 matches.

Messi, who plays a variety of attacking positions, has also piled up the goals: 793 in 1,003 professional matches by the end of 2022.

Role model v a rebel and a quiet child

— Pele was the clean-cut hero, scandal-free, honourable, sporting, with a career spent at just two clubs — Santos (1956-74) and New York Cosmos (1975-77).

Maradona played for six teams, was sent off at the 1982 World Cup, scored with his hand against England in the 1986 tournament, was banned in Spain for fighting on the pitch, and was sent home in disgrace from the 1994 World Cup after failing a drugs test. He also suffered a cocaine addiction.

Messi, the quiet child, resembled Pele in his loyalty to his first club Barcelona until their money troubles allowed Paris Saint-Germain to pry him away in 2021. His difficulties with the Spanish tax authorities and a host of sponsorship deals have not tarnished his image.

Ego wars

Until they reconciled in 2016, Pele and Maradona sparred over who was the greatest.

Pele has a museum. Maradona said Pele belonged “in a museum”.

Maradona, who enjoyed showing off his Fidel Castro and Che Guevara tattoos, mocked the Brazilian’s respect for authority.

Pele condemned Maradona as “not being an example” to youngsters because of his drug problems.

The more guarded Messi, as heir to Argentina’s greatest sporting hero, has avoided suggesting he is better than Maradona.

Source:  AFP

More than six decades after he first wowed the world on the football pitch, Pelé is no more. The superstar Brazil nicknamed “O Rei” – the King – and winner of three World Cups died on Thursday at the age of 82 after a battle with colon cancer. His death caps a storied life as one of the greatest footballers the game has ever known. 

Pelé’s daughter Kely Nascimento announced his death on Instagram. “We love you infinitely, rest in peace,” she wrote. His agent, Joe Fraga, confirmed his death.

The standard-bearer of “the beautiful game” had undergone treatment for colon cancer since 2021. He had been hospitalised for the last month with multiple ailments and died of organ failure.

“Inspiration and love marked the journey of King Pelé, who peacefully passed away today,” read his official Instagram account.

Edson Arantes do Nascimento was born to a poor family in Três Corações in southeastern Brazil on October 23, 1940. Nicknamed Pelé as a schoolboy, his first football was reportedly a sock stuffed with rags. The first man to have ever scored 1,000 career goals, Pelé’s dizzying exploits on the pitch brought him to 1,281 goals in 1,362 matches between 1956 and 1977 – including more than 1,000 for fabled Santos FC. 

It was wearing that club’s famous white shirt that Pelé achieved some of his most glittering successes, not least winning two Copa Libertadores (1961, 1962) and a Recopa Sudamericana (1968).

But Pelé, who also won 11 regional championships, was far more than just a club player. Selected 92 times by his country, Pelé’s international play was, too, the stuff of legend. He won three World Cups with Brazil (1958, 1962 and 1970) – a feat that remains his alone.

Pelé was blessed “with speed, balance, control, power, and an uncanny ability to anticipate the movements of his opponents and teammates”, according to the Bleacher Report sport news site. While leading his clubs to new heights, he also made an impression with his “gentleman-like behavior both on and off the pitch”.

A precocious talent

Pelé’s legend was forged starting with his earliest appearances, a precocious talent deploying his remarkable skills for all to see. He was just 15 in September 1956 when he first took the field for Santos, a baptism of fire against FC Corinthians that would see the young hopeful score his first goal.

Pelé would step up to football’s biggest stage two years later and shine for all the world to see. In 1958, the 17-year-old already had 100 goals under his belt in Brazil, winning him a place on the national squad for the World Cup in Sweden. The teenager was left on the bench for the Seleção’s three group matches to begin the tournament. But with the backingof his teammates, Pelé was in the starting 11 for the knock-out stages.

Given that chance, the teen phenom was nothing short of a revelation. Pelé scored in the quarter-finals, giving Brazil a 1-0 win over Wales. In the semi-finals, he went on to score three consecutive goals to knock out France. And in the final against the tournament hosts, Pelé netted another critical two goals as the Seleção beat Sweden 5-2 to take the World Cup home.

Honours and accolades

The Brazilian prodigy’s effort and talent would lay the groundwork for an extraordinary career punctuated by sky-high numbers. On six occasions, Pelé managed to score five goals in the same game, but he also notched 30 quadruples and 92 triples over two illustrious decades. In 1964, he infamously destroyed the Botafogo defence with eight goals in a single match.

After a successful turn with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League, “O Rei” retired in 1977, having collected 27 team trophies alongside myriad individual honours and memories galore. Of the latter, perhaps none were to rival the feverish atmosphere at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro during the 1969 match that saw Pelé score his 1,000th career goal.

Even after hanging up his cleats, Pelé continued to shine. After retirement he dedicated much of his time to causes close to his heart, and his humanitarian work with UNICEF earned him the 1978 International Peace Award. He made occasional appearances on the silver screen – he starred alongside Sylvester Stallone and Michael Caine in 1981’s Victory – but also briefly entered politics, serving as Brazil’s minister of sport from 1995 to 1998. He also served as a United Nations ambassador for ecology and the environment as well as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNESCO.

The sporting honours also continued to roll in. Péle was inducted into the US National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1993 and named Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee in 1999. FIFA gave him an honorary Ballon d’Or in 2014. Football’s highest authority also designated Pelé as FIFA Player of the Century, an honour he shared with Argentina’s Diego Maradona (a joint prize that always rankled the diminutive Argentine, who felt he alone deserved the title).

Some 45 years after Pelé stepped off the professional pitch, such accolades helped establish his status as a legend with new generations.

Now, after a long reign crowned with successes, Pelé has taken his leave. O Rei is dead … Long live the King!

Source: France 24

World Cup winner Lionel Messi is set to return to work at Paris Saint-Germain next week, his club coach Christophe Galtier said on Tuesday.

Messi, 35, was the lynchpin of the Argentina side that won the World Cup in Qatar nine days ago, scoring twice in the final against France which finished in a penalty shoot-out victory.

He then returned to Argentina with his teammates to celebrate their third World Cup triumph.

“Leo had a very big World Cup with his victory,” said Galtier on the eve of PSG’s meeting with Strasbourg as Ligue 1 kicks off again on Wednesday after the World Cup break.

“He had to return to Argentina for the celebrations and we decided that he was going to be off until January 1.

“He will come and join us either on the second or third (January) to pick up the season with us.

“He will have had between 13 and 14 days of recovery.”

Messi looks likely to miss two Ligue 1 matches and the French Cup match at Chateauroux, possibly making his return at home against Angers on January 11.

He is also expected to sit down with PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and other top club officials to pen a one-season extension to his current deal in the French capital which expires in the summer.

PSG’s other World Cup players, notably Kylian Mbappe and Neymar “will be available for the match tomorrow (Wednesday)”, said Galtier.

Mbappe could even start, having returned to training just three days after the disappointment of losing the World Cup final, in spite of his hat-trick.

“We made sure to manage on a case-by-case basis,” said Galtier. “After talking with him, Kylian wanted to join us fairly quickly.”

Source: AFP