The inevitable has happened. One of the greats of the football game, Pele passed away at the age of 82 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Pele was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2021 and on 22nd December 2022, doctors at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo said that the cancer was expanding.
Pele’s family members gathered around him during Christmas to spend the last few days with him as the doctors communicated it to his family members that it might be the last few days.
Pele was unarguably one of the greatest footballers to have donned the sport. A 3-time FIFA World Cup winner, Pele is often regarded as a magician who could weave magic on the football field.
The Brazilian maverick also is the highest goal-scorer in the history of football. Pele has netted 1281 goals in 1363 games and this simply underlines the greatness he possessed. He won the FIFA World Cup in 1958, 1962, and 1970.
Pele elevated football in Brazil and the journey started with a young boy playing football in the streets of Sao Paulo with a sock filled with newspapers and rags. He became the youngest player to play in a World Cup in 1958 when he took the field against USSR. It was Brazil’s 3rd game in the 1958 World Cup.
Pele donned the Brazil jersey in 92 games
The Brazilian talismanic striker played 92 games for Brazil and he scored 77 goals. He was undoubtedly one of the best players in Brazil as he single-handedly created a niche for himself in international football.
In his club football career, Pele played 636 matches for Santos and scored 618 goals. He then moved to New York Cosmos in 1975 and played 64 games for them, scoring 37 goals.
We now have lost two of their priceless gems of the 20th century from the world of football. While Maradona, the legendary striker from Argentina, passed away in November 2020 from multiple organ failures, we have lost Pele to colon cancer.
Also read: 3 Reasons Why Pele Is The GOAT Of Brazil
