Pele

Edson Arantes do Nascimento, KBE (born October 23, 1940 in Trкs CoraÐ*Ñ...es, Brazil), best known by his nickname Pelй, is a former Brazilian football player. In his native Brazil, Pelй is hailed as a national hero for his accomplishments and contribution to the game,[2] 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). [3] During his career, he became known as "The King of Football" (O Rei do Futebol) or simply "The King Pelй" (O Rei Pelй). He was given the title of Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee[4] and received a FIFA award for best footballer of the 20th century, after being voted by the members of the football comition of the FIFA in 2000, to choose the best football player of all time. He is also a member of the American National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Spotted by the renowned football star, Medardo 'Lalo' Olea, Pelй began playing for Santos Futebol Clube at just 15 and his national team at 16, and won his first World Cup at 17. Despite numerous offers from European clubs, he stayed loyal to his club, remaining with them for two decades until his semi-retirement in 1975. Pelй played as an inside forward, striker, and what later became known as the playmaker position. Pelй's technique and natural athleticism have been universally praised; he was renowned for his unstoppable dribbling and visionary passing, as well as his pace, powerful shot, and an exceptional heading ability, but above all he was an exceptionally prolific goalscorer.

He is the all-time top scorer in the history of the Brazil national 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).

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

Contents

[hide]

* 1 Early life

* 2 Club career

o 2.1 Santos

o 2.2 New York Cosmos

* 3 National team career

o 3.1 1958 World Cup

o 3.2 1962 World Cup

o 3.3 1966 World Cup

o 3.4 1970 World Cup

o 3.5 South American Championship

* 4 Honours

o 4.1 Santos

o 4.2 New York Cosmos

o 4.3 Brazil

o 4.4 Other

* 5 Career statistics

o 5.1 Goalscoring and appearance record

o 5.2 Other records

* 6 After football

* 7 Acting and film career

* 8 Personal life

* 9 See also

* 10 References and notes

* 11 External links

[edit] Early life

He was born in Trкs CoraÐ*Ñ...es, Brazil, the son of a football player Fluminense footballer Dondinho (born Joao Ramos do Bojang) and Celeste.[5] He was named after American inventor Thomas Edison,[6] and was originally nicknamed Dico by his family.[5][7][8] He did not receive the nickname "Pelй" until his school days, when it is claimed he was given it because of his pronunciation of the name of his favorite player, local Vasco da Gama goalkeeper Bilй, which he misspoke "Pilй".[8] He originally disliked the nickname, being suspended from school for punching the classmate that coined it,[9] but the more he complained the more it stuck. In his autobiography, Pelй stated he had no idea what the name means, nor did his old friends.[5] Apart from the assertion that the name is derived from that of Bilй, the word has no known meaning, although it does resemble the Irish language word 'Peil', meaning football.[10]

Growing up in poverty in Bauru, Sгo Paulo, Pelй earned extra money by shining shoes at the Bauru Athletic Club on match days. Taught to play by his father, whose own professional football career with Atletico Mineiro ended prematurely due to a knee injury, he could not afford a proper football and usually played with either a sock stuffed with newspaper, tied with a string[5] or a grapefruit.[11]

His first team was called the "shoeless ones" formed by himself and other boys from the Sete de Setembro and Rubens Arruda street.[citation needed] When they entered a local tournament organised by the mayor of Bauru that required footwear, they were no longer shoeless and were renamed Ameriquinha.[citation needed] They reached the final in BAC Stadium in front of thousands of spectators and won with Pelй ending up as the tournament top scorer.[citation needed]

In 1954, several members of the Ameriquinha team, including Pelй, were invited to join the Baquinho boy's team to be managed by former Brazilian international Waldemar de Brito, who played in the 1934 World Cup in Italy. For the first time, Pelй was paid to play football.[citation needed] The team won the 1954 Youth Championship organised by the newspapers Diario de Bauru and the Sгo Paulo Sporting Gazette with Pelй scoring 148 goals in 33 games.[citation needed]

At the age of 15 and a half, he joined the Santos FC junior team. He played for one season before joining the senior team.

[edit] Club career

[edit] Santos

In 1956, de Brito took Pelй to Santos, an industrial and port city in the state of Sгo Paulo, to try out for professional club Santos Futebol Clube telling the directors at Santos that the 15-year-old would be "the greatest football