Europe 1 with AFP 5:01 p.m., January 2, 2023
A few days after the death of the Brazilian Pelé, one of the greatest footballers of all time, the president of Fifa Gianni Infantino announced that the association was going to ask all its member countries to baptize a stadium in the name of the illustrious player.
Gianni Infantino is in Brazil for the funeral wake organized in Santos.
FIFA will ask all its member countries to name a stadium in the name of Pelé, announced Monday its president Gianni Infantino, present in Santos, in the south-east of Brazil, for the funeral wake of the legendary footballer.
Gianni Infantino came to Brazil to pay tribute to what many consider to be the greatest player of all time, at Santos FC's Vila Belmiro stadium, where the "King" began his career.
"We are going to ask all the countries in the world to name one of their stadiums in the name of Pelé," the Fifa president told reporters.
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Infantino, one of the first to meditate near Pelé's coffin
Along with other football leaders, he was one of the first on Monday morning to pay his respects near Pele's coffin, which was displayed in the center of the stadium lawn where the Brazilian wrote part of his legend.
"We are filled with sadness. Pelé is eternal, he is a world football icon," he added.
At the headquarters of Fifa in Geneva, the flags of all countries were lowered to half-mast on Friday, the day after the death of the triple world champion, who had been fighting for more than a year against colon cancer.
Several hundred people flocked to the Santos FC stadium on Monday for the funeral wake open to the public, which will end on Tuesday at 10 a.m. (1 p.m. GMT).
A procession will then travel through the streets of Santos, before the burial, reserved for the family.