LEGENDS OF THE BEAUTIFUL GAME: PELE

Edison Arantes do Nascimento (born October 23, 1940 in Três Corações, Brazil), best known by his nickname Pelé, is a former Brazilian football player, rated by many as the greatest footballer of all time. He was given the title of Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee

In his native Brazil, Pelé is hailed as a national hero. He is known for his accomplishments and contributions to the game of football, in addition to being officially declared the football ambassador of the world by FIFA and a national treasure by the Brazilian government. He is also acknowledged for his vocal support of policies to improve the social conditions of the poor (when he scored his 1,000th goal he dedicated it to the poor children of Brazil). During his career, he became known as "The King of Football" (O Rei do Futebol), "The King Pelé" (O Rei Pelé) or simply "The King" (O Rei). He is also a member of the American National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Spotted by football star Waldemar de Brito, Pelé began playing for Santos Futebol Clube at 15 and his national team at 16, and won his first World Cup at 17. Despite numerous offers from European clubs, the current economic conditions and Brazilian Football regulations benefited Santos FC, thus enabling them to keep Pelé for almost two decades until his semi-retirement in 1974. Pelé played as an inside forward, striker, and what later became known as the playmaker position. Pelé's technique and natural athleticism have been universally praised; he was renowned for his excellent dribbling and passing, his paced, powerful shot, exceptional heading ability, and prolific goalscoring.

He is the all-time top scorer in the history of the Brazil national football team and is the only footballer to be a part of three World Cup-winning teams. It should be noted that though he was named part of the 1962 squad, he was injured and did not receive a winner's medal. In November 2007 FIFA announced that he would however be awarded the 1962 medal, making him the only player in the world to have three World Cup gold medals.

Since his full retirement in 1977 Pelé has been an ambassador for football and has also undertaken various acting roles and commercial ventures.

Honours

Club

Santos (Official Tournaments)
- Campeonato Paulista: 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969 and 1973^[26]
- Torneio Rio-São Paulo: 1959, 1963 and 1964^[27]
- Torneio Roberto Gomes Pedrosa (Taça de Prata): 1968
- Taça Brasil: 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964 and 1965
- Copa Libertadores: 1962 and 1963
- Intercontinental Cup: 1962 and 1963
- South-American Recopa: 1968
New York Cosmos
- NASL Champions: 1977

Country

Brazil
- FIFA World Cup: 1958, 1962, 1970
- Roca Cup: 1957, 1963
- Copa O'Higgins:1959
- Copa Atlântica:¹⁹⁶⁰

The tally of 32 team trophies makes him, together with Vítor Baía, the player with most career titles.

Individual

Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee 1999

In December 2000, Pelé was named Footballer of the Century by FIFA. The award was intended to be based upon votes in a web poll, but after it became apparent that it favoured Diego Maradona, many observers complained that the Internet nature of the poll would have meant a skewed demographic of younger fans who would have seen Maradona play, but not Pelé. FIFA then appointed a "Family of Football" committee of soccer experts to decide the winner of the award. Maradona was instead awarded the title of FIFA Internet Player of the Century. Allegations that the Internet poll had been bombarded by Argentine fans still remain to this day.