By Andrew Downie and Tariq Panja
Pelé, the legendary Brazilian soccer player who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died on Friday (AEDT) after a long battle with cancer.
His daughter made the announcement on Instagram that her father Edson Arantes do Nascimento, known the world over as Pelé, had died. He was 82.
“We love you infinitely, rest in peace,” Kely Nascimento posted along with a photo of the hands of family members on his in a hospital bed. “Rest in peace”.
Pelé had been in hospital for almost a month.Credit: Getty Images
He had undergone treatment for colon cancer since 2021 and died at a hospital in Sao Paulo. “Inspiration and love marked the journey of King Pelé, who peacefully passed away today,” his Twitter account posted.
The hospital’s medical report said the man known in Brazil as just “The King” died at 3.27pm, Sao Paulo time, “due to multiple organ failure resulting from his colon cancer”.
The post from Pelé’s daughter’s account.Credit: Instagram
Pelé scored a world record 1281 goals in 1366 games, and is the only player ever to win the World Cup three times.
With sublime skills and a winning smile, he helped make soccer the world’s most popular sport and he charmed popes, presidents and Hollywood stars in a seven-decade career as player and ambassador for the sport.
Born on October 23, 1940, in the small Minas Gerais town of Tres Corações, or “Three Hearts”, Pelé learnt the game from his father, a semi-professional player whose promising career was derailed by a knee injury.
Paying tribute to his hero, Brazil’s Neymar said in an Instagram post that Pelé had given voice to the poor, to black people, and especially gave visibility to his country.
Barack Obama too hailed Pelé’s understanding of the power of sport to bring people together.
When FIFA, football’s international governing body, sought to name the greatest player of the 20th century, an internet poll gave the title to Diego Maradona, while a panel of journalists, officials and coaches chose Pelé. FIFA named them joint winners of the award.
Pelé, who popularised football’s nickname as the “beautiful game,” had his own view.
“People talk about the best being Pelé or Diego Maradona, but for me the best player ever was Alfredo Di Stefano,” Pelé said of the Argentina-born former Real Madrid forward.
Pelé’s gregarious nature and modest temperament helped make him an ambassador for Brazil. “The flag of Brazil is Pelé,” said Ricardo Trade, the chief executive officer of Brazil’s local organising committee for the 2014 World Cup. “Pelé is very important for us and for our football.”
Retired Brazilian star player Zico, who only on Wednesday, attended a celebrity game in Brazil wearing a “Eternal Pelé” T-shirt, said: “This debate about the player of the century is absurd. There’s only one possible answer: Pelé. He’s the greatest player of all time, and by some distance, I might add.”
Those who encountered him throughout the years, sang his praise.
“To watch him play was to watch the delight of a child combined with the extraordinary grace of a man in full,” the late Nelson Mandela once said.
Whereas the late pop artist Andy Warhol declared: “Pelé was one of the few who contradicted my theory: instead of 15 minutes of fame, he will have 15 centuries.”
Barack Obama too hailed Pelé’s understanding of the power of sport to bring people together.
Pelé had suffered from a series of health issues in recent years, including hip surgery that left him with recurring pain and trouble walking unaided. He reduced his public appearances, but remained active on social media.
He is survived by six known children. A seventh, whom he didn’t recognise as his own for years, died of cancer in 2006.
The stadium in Vila Belmiro, home ground to Santos, where Pelé played most matches of his career will hold his funeral and vigil.
Santos said his coffin would leave Albert Einstein Hospital early on Monday morning and be placed in the centre of the field to allow fans to visit until Tuesday.
It will then be carried through the streets of Santos and will pass in front of the home of his 100-year-old mother, Celeste. Recent reports in Brazilian media say she cannot leave her bed and is not lucid.
President Jair Bolsonaro whose last day on the job is on Saturday, before the inauguration of Luis Inacio Lula da Silva on January 1, has declared three days of mourning.
Reuters, Bloomberg, staff writer
Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.