Brazil begins a three-day national mourning on Friday after the death on Thursday of “King” Pelé aged 82, who is considered the greatest soccer player of all time and is being mourned around the world.
After the death of Elizabeth II in September, another great figure of the 20th century disappeared in 2022, provoking reactions from the world of football, but also from far beyond, in politics or even culture.
Pelé, the only player in history to have won three World Cups (1958, 1962, 1970), had been in poor health for several months: he was battling colon cancer and had been hospitalized in Sao Paulo at the end of November, in the middle of the World Cup in Qatar.
“We love you infinitely, rest in peace”: with these words published on Instagram, one of his daughters, Kely Nascimento, announced the death of the most famous Brazilian in history, surrounded by several family members for a few days in the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo .
A few hours later, a decree announced an “official mourning” of three days, “a mark of respect following the death of Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pelé”.
On Monday, a 24-hour wake open to the public will take place at the stadium of Santos FC, the club where the eternal number 10 shone from 1956 to 1974.
The funeral on Tuesday, on the other hand, will take place in the intimacy of the family, after a procession that follows the coffin in the streets of Santos, a port city 80 km from Sao Paulo, which for its part has decreed a mourning of seven days.
Fans held up a banner reading “Eternal King Pele” in front of the Sao Paulo hospital where “O Rei” died. In Rio de Janeiro, the Christ the Redeemer of Corcovado, an emblematic monument that dominates the bay, was lit up in honor of Pelé, as was the mythical Maracana Stadium.
“The biggest”
“Mourning” for the “immortal king of football” headlined the Brazilian daily O Globo on its website with pictures of the player in the national shirt, especially the iconic one where everyone is smiling, he raises his right arm, carried by his teammate Jairzinho from behind with his number 7.
The world of football expressed their emotions on social networks, drawing the dimension of the character. “He turned football into an art,” wrote Neymar, his distant successor at Brazil’s No10, who equaled his national record of 77 goals for the Seleçao in Qatar.
Tributes also from current superstars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé: “Rest in peace, Pelé,” wished the Argentine, while the Frenchman noted that “his legacy will never be forgotten”.
The French Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane, the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, of course countless Brazilians, such as ex-striker Ronaldo, all shared a few words and photos with the icon, “the greatest”, according to his former teammate Mario Zagallo (Brazil). and Franz Beckenbauer (Cosmos New York).
The political world has placed a choir or team on the highest peak of the state. In Brazil, of course: “There has never been a number 10 like him,” replied President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who will be sworn in on Sunday. Outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro hailed the man who “wore the name of Brazil around the world.”
Elsewhere, American Joe Biden hailed “a tale of what is possible,” while Frenchman Emmanuel Macron tweeted a triptych, “The game, the king. Eternity.” and the Senegalese Macky Sall applauded “his virtuosity, his genius and his humanism”.
Voted Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee in 1999, Pelé was an outstanding athlete. There is his record of goals -1281 in 1363 games under the shirts of Santos, his club in Brazil (1956-74), the Seleçao and the Cosmos of New York (1975-77), a record held by the International Federation ( Fifa ).
But beyond statistics, Pelé revolutionized football, emblematic player of “ogo bonito” (beautiful game) and of Brazil with the title at the 1970 World Cup, “he was the greatest and she was the most beautiful”, writes Vincent Duluc in the editorial of French sports daily L’Equipe.
“The ball is crying: Pelé is dead,” concludes the Argentine sports newspaper Olé, while another Argentine daily AS devotes its front page to the famous photo of Pelé’s feet by Annie Leibovitz, which tells all about his incredible journey.
promise to his father
Born on October 23, 1940 to a poor family in Tres Coraçoes, a small town in Minas Gerais (southeast) surrounded by coffee plantations, little Edson had to sell peanuts on the street to help his parents.
Legend has it that as a child he saw his father cry during the ‘Maracanazo’ of 1950, that defeat by Brazil to Uruguay that cost the country its first world title, and promised him he would win it.
And he fulfilled his promise at 17 when he splashed his goals and class to the 1958 World Cup in Sweden. In tears, he is carried triumphantly by his teammates. In 1962 he won the title again, although his tournament was interrupted by an injury, another also his participation in the 1966 edition. The 1970 World Cup, the first televised color broadcast, marked his apotheosis.
Since then he has been a national and world monument, although, unlike the eternal rebel Diego Maradona or the popular idol Garrincha, in Brazil he was often perceived as a man close to established power, even during the military dictatorship (1964-1985 ). .
His notoriety will also propel him into other fields, cinema, singing and even politics, with a post as Minister of Sport (1995-1998) alongside an eventful personal career – three marriages, seven children (accredited) and a telenovela life. Royal.