Soccer Legend Pelé Dead At 82

Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the greatest athlete of the 20th century, died Thursday. He was 82.

Pelé had been hospitalized since December for a “reevaluation of the chemotherapeutic therapeutic treatment of the tumor” During his battle with colon cancer according To the hospital

His agent confirmed his demise. according To the Associated Press

Brazil’s all-time leading scorer, Pelé has 77 international goals in 92 matches and helped lead the Brazilian national team to three World Cup championships: 1958, 1962, and 1970. Although the Brazilian legend has scored more than a thousand goals, the total is still quite small. disputedHis official goals total 757, which includes his national team and club goals with Santos FC as well as his club goals with New York Cosmos.

Often referred to simply as the “King of Football,” he was born on October 23, 1940, in Três Corações, Brazil, with the name Edson Arantes do Nascimento. The nickname Pelé came about when he mispronounced the name of Bilé, a teammate of his father. He gave the nickname stuck When his classmates started to refer to him as such.

“My friends, I want to keep everyone calm and positive,” Pelé wrote in a recent Instagram post. “I’m strong, with a lot of hope and I follow my treatment as usual … I have a lot of faith in God and every message of love I receive from you all over the world keeps me full of energy.”

He concluded the post by encouraging his followers not to miss Brazil’s World Cup match in Qatar. His support for his country’s national team is not without reciprocation. Brazilian fans displayed a massive banner with an image of Pelé holding a ball, with the words: “Pelé: Get Well Soon” “We love Pelé” during the country’s match against Cameroon.

Voted FIFA’s player of the century with Argentinian Diego Maradonna in 2000, Pelé started playing for Santos FC at age 15 and his country’s national team at 16. Soccer is known as “The Beautiful Game” largely because of Pelé, who referred It should be treated as such. Over half of Brazil’s World Cup championships were achieved with Pelé on the team. He continues to be a part of the team. remains The youngest ever World Cup goal scorer was 17-year-old, in the 1958 competition.

Pelé retired from soccer in 1977, but didn’t leave the public eye. Being admired by many across the world, he has been awarded the International Peace Award, the International Olympic Committee’s Athlete of the Century, and one of Time’s 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century, among other awards. From 1995 to 1998, Pelé served as Brazil’s Minister of Sports.

He had emphasized humanitarian work since retiring, focusing on international children’s rights and poverty. He was a goodwill ambassador to the United Nations. founded the Pelé Foundation to help children in education and poverty alleviation.

Pelé greatly impacted American soccer, attracted great attention as a New York Cosmo. This opened up the possibility for other international stars from around the world to play in the United States. He met With several American presidents, including Nixon and Ford at the White House. Both Presidents Clinton and Obama met with Pelé during their trips to the South American country.

Reagan made the following statement at a 1982 meeting: “My name is Ronald Reagan, I’m the President of the United States of America. But you don’t need to introduce yourself because everyone knows who Pelé is.”

Pelé was the first soccer player known to many Americans and he helped normalize the sport in the U.S. His speed, control of the game, and incredible goals caught the attention of people around the world. He isn’t just one of the greatest soccer players in history, he is also known as one of the greatest sports figures as well.

Pelé is survived by his wife of six years and seven children.