Pele: Brazil legend dies aged 82 after battle with cancer

Brazil football legend Pele, one of the greatest players of all time, has died at the age of 82.

The Brazilian football icon is known as one of the greatest of all time with three World Cup trophies in 1958, 1962, and 1970 and was named Player of the Century by FIFA in 2000.

Pele netted over 1,200 goals, including unofficial matches, making him a legendary striker during his career from 1956 and 1977.

He was not only a top-class player but also an iconic figure on the pitch as his talents helped the recognition of his country in his performances at the World Cups and, became the first global football star.

Pele is the only player to win three World Cups and become the all-time leading goal scorer for the Selecao with 77 goals in 92 games.

He was only at the age of 17 when he won his maiden FIFA World Cup victory in 1958 in Sweden. With six goals in three matches, he led his nation to their first World Cup triumph and his performance drew global attention.

In 1966, he was injured in the second match and missed many parts of the tournament but in 1970, he appeared every minute, firing Brazil to their third title.

Pele always has the spot in football’s as GOAT (the greatest of all time) with three World Cups victories.

The 82-year-old legend, one of the most influential people of the 20th century, is now at the hospital and said he watched his country’s matches in the 2022 World Cup.

• Won three World Cup titles with Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970 – the only player to have won the showpiece tournament three times.
• Became the youngest player to win the World Cup trophy at 17, a record that still stands.
• Scored 757 goals in 812 official matches for club and country, a record that stood for decades until Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo eclipsed his tally.
• Brazil’s football association (CBF) and Santos say Pele scored a total of 1,283 goals in 1,367 matches while FIFA puts the figure at 1,281 goals in 1,366 games. Other sources give varying figures depending on the types of games included.
• Netted 77 goals in 92 official matches for Brazil – the country’s all-time leading goalscorer, alongside Neymar who netted his 77th goal in the 2022 World Cup.
• Scored 12 goals in World Cups.
• Registered six assists at Mexico 1970 – a record for one World Cup.
• Scored 92 hat-tricks across official and unofficial games.
• Scored 127 goals for Santos in 1959, thought to be the most goals scored by a club player in one calendar year.
• Finished as Santos’ top scorer with 643 goals in 659 competitive matches.
• Won Brazil’s Serie A six times with Santos (1961-1965 and 1968).
• Led Santos to two Copa Libertadores titles (1962 and 1963).

Farewell to the King. The master of the beautiful game. Rest in peace, Pelé.