Pele, the legendary Brazilian football player who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died at the age of 82.
Sao Paulo’s Albert Einstein hospital, where Pele was undergoing treatment, said he died at 3:27pm (18:27 GMT) on Thursday on the 29th of December 2022 “due to multiple organ failures resulting from the progression of colon cancer associated with his previous medical condition. Doctors there said his colon cancer was showing “progression” and he needed “more extensive care to treat kidney and heart failure”.
Pele, whose real name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, had colon cancer which was detected in 2021
Pele is regarded as one of the greatest footballer ever, having led Brazil to win 3 world cup titles in 1958, 1962, 1970. A legend of the beautiful game, was Brazil’s leading goal scorer, with 77 goals in 92 games, in total he scored a world record 1,279 goals in 1,363 matches during a 21-year career.
His father taught him to play football at the age of 16, he then began playing for the national team of Brazil.
A public funeral was held outside Sao Paulo, Brazil, at the Vila Belmiro Stadium, where he played for many years with the Santos football club.
Pele’s funeral, which involved his body being publicly displayed in an open coffin which was draped with the flags of Brazil and Santos FC, began at Vila Belmiro stadium in Santos on 2 January 2023. Thousands of fans flooded the streets to attend the first day of the funeral service, with some in attendance claiming that they had to wait three hours in line.
Recently, his name was added to a Portuguest dictionary in Brazil as an adjective to use when describing someone who is “exceptional”.
Examples: He is the Pelé of basketball, she is the Pelé of tennis, she is the Pelé of Brazilian theatre, he is the Pelé of medicine.”
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