Pelé, byname Edson Arantes do Nascimento, (was born on October 23, 1940, Três Corações, Brazil) died on December 29, 2022. the Brazilian football player, in his time probably the most famous and possibly the best-paid athlete in the world. He was part of the Brazilian national teams that won three World Cup championships (1958, 1962, and 1970).
After playing for a minor league club at Bauru, São Paulo state, Pelé (whose nickname apparently is without significance) was rejected by major club teams in the city of São Paulo. In 1956, moreover, he joined the Santos Football Club, which, with Pelé at inside left forward, won nine São Paulo league championships and, in 1962 and 1963, both the Libertadores Cup and the Intercontinental Club Cup. Sometimes called “Pérola Negra” (“Black Pearl”), he became a Brazilian national hero. He combined kicking power and accuracy with a remarkable ability to anticipate other players’ moves. After the 1958 World Cup, Pelé was declared a national treasure by the Brazilian government in order to ward off large offers from European clubs and ensure that he would remain in Brazil. On November 19, 1969, in his 909th first-class match, he scored his 1,000th goal.
Pele Football Statistics:
| Team | Games | Goals | Assists | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santos FC | 656 | 643 | 277 | 0,98 |
| Cosmos NY | 64 | 37 | 23 | 0,58 |
| Brasil | 92 | 77 | 43 | 0,84 |
| Totals: | 812 | 757 | 343 | 0,93 |
