The undisputed greatest footballer of all time, Edson Arantes do Nascimento, otherwise known as Pele, has died.
FIFA has confirmed that Pele died peacefully in Brazil on Thursday, aged 82.
Pele died in the presence of his family members to blow the final whistle on one of football’s great of greats and icons of icons.
No footballer has come any closer to his repertoire of skill with the ball and his scoring ability.
The Brazilian leaves a trail of three FIFA World Cup titles to his name, three Guinness World Records, and the highest number of goals scored ever.
FACTS ABOUT PELE
He was also the youngest-ever footballer to win the World Cup championship, aged 17.
Pele was named athlete of the century by the International Olympic Committee in 1999.
On November 19 1969, Pele scored his 1000th career goal.
Pele is the youngest scorer, youngest World Cup hat-trick scorer and youngest finalist.
The Brazilian icon was also the youngest player to score in a Final in World Cup history.
American side New York Cosmos brought Pele out of retirement in 1975.
WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT PELE
“To watch him play was to watch the delight of a child combined with the extraordinary grace of a man in full.” Nelson Mandela
“Pele revolutionised football. He stopped a war. And united countries, united families. There was no race problem or language problem. I was born in 1970.
“In 2002, I became a World Cup champion. I was captain. I had the honour of receiving the World Cup Trophy from no less a person than Pele! Man! If I say any more, I’ll cry. It’s really emotional!—Cafu
Malcolm Allison: “How do you spell Pele?“
Pat Crerand: “Easy: G-O-D.”
Television commentators at the 1970 World Cup
“The greatest goal I ever scored was a one-two with [his mother] Celeste – we named him Edson Arantes do Nascimento.” Dondinho, Pele’s father
“An artist, in my eyes, is someone who can lighten up a dark room.
“I have never and will never find the difference between the pass from Pele to Carlos Alberto in the final of the World Cup in 1970 and the poetry of the young Rimbaud.
“There is in each of these human manifestations an expression of beauty which touches us and gives us a feeling of eternity.” Eric Cantona
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