The funeral ceremony for the body of Brazilian football legend Pele ended with closing the doors to visitors at the Santos club stadium, about an hour before the casket began to be transported.
The official ceremony ended with the transfer of the casket through a solemn funeral procession that carried his body and toured the streets of Santos today, Tuesday, heading to the "Ecominical Memorial Necropolis" cemetery, where he will be buried.
And the city of Santos bid farewell to the funeral of the late legend yesterday, Monday, by watching over his body for 24 hours.
Fans lined up to take a farewell look at Pele's body lying in a coffin in the middle of Santos' Villa Belmero stadium.
Pele died last Thursday at the age of 82 after a struggle with colon cancer.
"Pele leaves millions of Santos fans across our country. He was the father of Brazilian football," said fan Antonio da Luz, while waiting outside the stadium for the ceremony.
The conclusion of the funeral ceremony for the body of legend Pele#pele # Pele pic.twitter.com/VBW45hG6L0
- beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) January 3, 2023
FIFA president Gianni Infantino was among the first to arrive for the ceremony, and said he would ask each country to name one of its stadiums after Pele, in honor of the only man to win
three World Cups as a player.
"Pele is immortal," Infantino told reporters. "For sure, FIFA will give the king the honor he deserves. We have asked all the football associations in the world to observe a minute of silence before each match and we will ask the 211 member countries to name a stadium after Pele. Future generations should know." Pele and remember him."
Pele was born in 1940 in the small town of Tres Coraques, but in 1956 he moved to Santos, where he spent most of his life.
In a few hours in #Santos, #Brazil, the farewell ceremony for soccer legend #Pele will begin.
pic.twitter.com/E5va5OJ0Hd
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) January 2, 2023
Pele's body, under fireworks, arrived in Santos, which has a population of about 430,000, in the early hours of yesterday morning from Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo.
Television footage showed former Brazil midfielder Ze Roberto and Edinho, Pele's son, helping to lay the coffin inside the stadium.
Neymar, Vinicius Juniors and Real Madrid sent wreaths.
Santos' press office said that about 5,000 journalists from around the world had obtained permits to cover the farewell ceremony for Pele, who scored more than 1,000 goals with Santos.
A number of Brazilian officials attended the ceremony, including the new president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and his deputy, Geraldo Alcmene, who is known for his encouragement of Santos.
"I will be here all day, 24 hours, from 10 am to 10 am (the next day). Pele deserves it," said fan Roberto Santos.