Michael Abrahams | Pelé’s untouchable legacy

Pelé was born Edson Arantes do Nascimento on October 23, 1940, in Três Corações, Minas Gerais, Brazil. His parents named him after the American inventor Thomas Edison, deciding to remove the ‘i’ and call him ‘Edson’. He was initially nicknamed ‘Dico’ by his family, but earned the name ‘Pelé’ during his schooldays when he allegedly mispronounced the name of his favourite player, local Vasco da Gama goalkeeper Bilé.

Edson grew up in poverty and, as a boy, played football with either a sock stuffed with newspaper and tied with string, or a grapefruit. However, his talent was apparent in his youth, as he led Bauru Atlético Clube juniors to two São Paulo state youth championships. As a teenager, he was part of the region’s first futsal (indoor football) competition, which his team won before winning several others. By the time he was 15, in 1956, he had made his professional debut, playing for Santos and scoring in their 7-1 victory against Corinthians Santo Andre, and by age 16, he became the top scorer in the league. At 16, he also became a national team member, making his international debut in a 2–1 defeat against Argentina on July 7, 1957, at the Maracanã, scoring his first goal for his country and remaining the youngest goalscorer for Brazil’s national team.

In 1958, at age 17, he represented Brazil at the FIFA World Cup in Sweden, becoming the youngest player to ever participate in the event. His first match was against the USSR in the third match of the first round, where he gave the assist to Vavá’s second goal. He scored a hat-trick in the semi-final against France, becoming the youngest player in World Cup history to do so. On June 29, 1958, Pelé became the youngest player in a World Cup final match. He scored two goals in that final as Brazil beat Sweden 5–2, finishing the tournament with six goals in four matches played. In the competition, he tied for second place (behind record-breaker Just Fontaine of France), and was named best young player of the tournament and retroactively given the Silver Ball as the second-best player, behind Didi. Following the competition, he was nicknamed ‘O Rei’ (‘The King’).

NATIONAL TREASURE

After the tournament, European clubs, including Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United, Inter Milan and Valencia CF, all tried to sign Brazil’s ‘Black Pearl’, prompting the government under President Jânio Quadros to declare him an “official national treasure” to prevent him from being transferred out of the country.

Then came the 1962 World Cup in Chile. He was again a member of the victorious squad, although he was injured in the second match and sat out the remainder of the tournament. In the 1966 World Cup in England, he became the first player to score in three competitive FIFA World Cups, but repeated fouls against him by Hungarian and Portuguese defenders injured him and affected his performance, contributing to Brazil being eliminated in the first round.

Pelé was again a member of Brazil’s team, considered by many to be the greatest World Cup team in history, which won the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. He became the first player to score in four World Cup tournaments, won the Golden Ball, and registered six assists – a record for one World Cup. He remains the first and only player to have won three World Cup titles. After winning the World Cup for the third time, the Jules Rimet Trophy was given to Brazil to keep indefinitely.

His busy touring schedule prevented him from winning the Copa America with Brazil. However, in the one tournament he appeared in, in 1959, he was awarded the Golden Boot. Pelé’s last international match was on July 18, 1971, against Yugoslavia in Rio de Janeiro. His record tally of 77 goals for his country (in 92 games) was only equalled during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar by Neymar.

TOP GOALSCORER

While playing for his country, his career at the club level thrived. He was Santos’s all-time top goalscorer, with 643 goals in 659 games. In what has been described as a ‘golden era’ for the club, he led the side to the 1962 and 1963 Copa Libertadores, and the 1962 and 1963 Intercontinental Cup. His 643 goals were the most goals scored for a single club, until Lionel Messi of Barcelona surpassed it in December 2020.

In 1975, Pelé came out of semi-retirement to sign with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (NASL), scoring on his debut for the club during a 2–2 draw against the Dallas Tornado. During his third and final season in 1977, he led the Cosmos to their second Soccer Bowl title with a 2–1 win over the Seattle Sounders. During his time with the club, he attracted record crowds and was single-handedly responsible for renewing interest in the sport in the USA, a country where the term ‘football’ is used to refer to American football.

On October 1, 1977, Pelé ended his career in an exhibition match between the Cosmos and Santos before a sold-out crowd at Giants Stadium. He played the first half with the Cosmos and the second with Santos. The game ended with the Cosmos winning 2–1, with Pelé scoring with a 30-yard free kick for the Cosmos.

Pelé was a genuinely extraordinary athlete. In the words of his Santos teammate Pepe, “Pelé was the only complete player that I have seen. Marvellous goals, fantastic passes, sensational dribbles. His jump, his shot, heading, goals, running with the ball.” Not only was Pelé adept at striking the ball with both feet, but he was also, in the era when only one substitute was allowed, Santos’ backup goalkeeper. In games for which records exist, while playing the role of custodian on four occasions, he did not concede a goal. Averaging almost a goal per game throughout his career, his 1,279 goals in 1,363 games, which includes friendlies, is recognised as a Guinness World Record.

No player did more to popularise football’s reputation as ‘the beautiful game’ than Pelé. May the king rest in peace.

Michael Abrahams is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, social commentator and human-rights advocate. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and michabe_1999@hotmail.com, or follow him on Twitter @mikeyabrahams.