Pelé: Why the Football Legend is considered the Greatest of All Time
Pelé, the soccer legend who inspired a nation on and off the field, died Thursday after battling colon cancer. He was 82.
The Brazilian legend played 1,363 games and reportedly scored 1,281 goals, 14 World Cup finals appearances; 12 goals scored and accumulated 126 goals in only 1959. He is the only player who has won three World Cups.
In a 7-1 victory over Corinthians de Santo André two years prior, Pele made his club debut for Santos at the age of 15.
It was the first of 643 goals he would score for the club in official tournaments over the course of 19 years, while Santos claims the number is actually higher than 1,000 when exhibition games are included, many of which were against illustrious European opposition.
Pele is credited with 1,283 goals in 1,367 games by the Brazilian Football Confederation and Santos, compared to 1,281 goals throughout 1,366 games according to Fifa.
Pele, then 21 years old, opened Brazil's 1962 World Cup campaign with a brilliant individualg oal in a 2-0 victory over Mexico. However, Pele suffered an injury in the following game and had to watch from the sidelines as his team successfully defended their title.
His most recognizable World Cup victory came in the third and final season. After beingd ismissed from England's 1966 tournament due to a foul, he was the center of an excitinga ttacking side that won the title in 1970, scoring the game's first goal in a 4-1 triumph over Italy.
From his happy tears on teammate Nilton Santos' chest to his embrace with England captain Bobby Moore, Pele's moments of enchantment have crossed centuries and defined the history oft he sport.
Alongside German veteran Franz Beckenbauer and fellow 1970 World Cup champion Carlos Alberto, he played his final club match for the New York Cosmos, a team that included a star-studded roster.
Prior to Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Diego Maradona, and Johan Cruyff, Pele was selected as the greatest player in a BBC Sport survey conducted in 2020.
"A young genius, a World Cup hero, a world legend"
The fact that he could play football with equal grace and beauty when he missed a goal as well as when he made one is a simple way to gauge his greatness.
Pele, one of the first internationally recognized figures in sports, displayed his brilliance when playing for Santos as a youth and later for the New York Cosmos, where he made a fortune.
Pele's name will be associates with football no matter where it is played.
At the end of his professional playing career, Pele played for the New York Cosmos and is the only person to have won three World Cups.
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