More than half a century after laying the groundwork for an extraordinary career, King Pelé is no more.
"O Rei", by his Brazilian nickname, died on Thursday December 29 from colon cancer.
He was 82 years old.
The man with 1000 goals
A true footballing legend, Edson Arantes do Nascimento, born October 23, 1940 in Três Corações, will remain in the collective imagination as the only man to have reached 1,000 goals.
Between 1956 and 1977, Pelé multiplied the exploits and brought his official statistics to 1,281 achievements in 1,362 matches, including more than 1,000 under the jersey of the legendary Santos FC.
It is also under the white tunic that he won some of his greatest continental successes, in particular two Copa Libertadores (1961, 1962) and a Recopa Sudamericana (1968).
But Pelé, who also won the regional championship 11 times, was not just a club player.
In addition to his immense Paulista record, there are 92 caps with Brazil, under whose jersey he won three World Cups (1958, 1962 and 1970).
A unique fact for a football player.
A precocious talent
If, nearly forty years after the end of his career, it is the player's prize list that immediately comes back to the fore, his early emergence is undoubtedly what forged the base of his legend.
Pelé was only fifteen years old, in September 1956, when he entered Santos for the first time, against FC Corinthians.
A baptism of fire that the very young hope haloed with a very first goal.
But it was not until two years later, in 1958, that the football planet massively discovered the phenomenon.
Pelé, who is only 17 years old, already has more than 100 goals in Brazil, which allows him to earn his place in the Brazilian selection for the World Cup in Sweden.
During the three group matches of the Seleçao, he remained on the bench but, with the support of his partners, he ended up integrating the starting eleven during the knockout matches.
The revelation is total.
In the quarters, Pelé scored his first national goal against Wales and, in the process, in the semi-finals, he eliminated France by signing a magnificent hat-trick.
Then, in the final against Sweden, Brazil did not take half measures.
The Seleçao crushed the host country 5-2, a victory during which Pelé would score twice.
A successful career
The talent and work of the young prodigy will allow him to know an extraordinary career, which will be marked by maddening figures, of which here are some examples.
On six occasions, he will score five goals in the same meeting, but he will also register thirty quadruplets and 92 triplets.
In 1964, he atomized the defense of Botafogo by scoring eight goals in the same match.
After a successful freelance at the New York Cosmos, "O Rei" retired in 1977 with 27 collective titles to his name and the memory of a match in 1969 where, in an indescribable atmosphere at the Maracana, he scored what was then counted as the thousandth goal of his career.
And even after hanging up the boots, Pelé continued to shine.
He was awarded the Athlete of the Century prize by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), then the Golden Ball of Honor by Fifa in January 2014. The supreme footballing body even decided to award him the title of best player of the 20th century, shared with the Argentinian Maradona.
Awards that establish the Brazilian a little more in his legend, even if he will have known the spotlight off the field, as Minister of Sports of Brazil between 1995 and 1998 and by dedicating a large part of his time to his mission. Ambassador for the UN and UNESCO for Education, Ecology and the Environment.
This Thursday, December 29, after a long reign marked by conquests, King Pelé died… Long live the King!
The summary of the
France 24 week invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you!
Download the France 24 app