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| Birth Name(s) : Pele |
Date of Birth: N/A |
| Status:
Single
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| Profession:
Athlete |
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Full Pele Biography
Edson Arantes do Nascimento, KBE (born October 23, 1940 in Três Corações, Brazil), best known by his nickname Pelé, is a former Brazilian football player, considered possibly the greatest footballer ever. He was given the title of Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee and jointly received a FIFA award for the greatest player in the history of the game, along with another legend Diego Maradona.
Spotted by football star Waldemar de Brito, Pelé began playing for Santos Futebol Clube at just 15 and his national team at 16, and won his first World Cup at 17. Despite numerous offers from European clubs, he stayed loyal to his club, remaining with them for two decades until his semi-retirement in 1975. Pelé played as an inside forward, striker, and what later became known as the playmaker position. Pelé's technique and natural athleticism have been universally praised; he was renowned for his unstoppable dribbling and visionary passing, as well as his pace, powerful shot, and an exceptional heading ability, but above all he was an exceptionally prolific goalscorer.
He is the all-time top scorer in the history of the Brazil national team and is the only footballer to be a part of three World Cup-winning teams (it should be noted that though he was named part of the 1962 squad, he was injured and did not receive a winner's medal).
Since his full retirement in 1977 Pelé has been an ambassador for football and has also undertaken various acting roles and commercial ventures.
In 1956, de Brito took Pelé to Santos, an industrial and port city in the state of São Paulo, to try out for professional club Santos Futebol Clube telling the directors at Santos that the 15-year-old would be "the greatest football player in the world."
Pelé states that his most beautiful goal was scored at Rua Javari stadium on a Campeonato Paulista match against São Paulo rivals Juventus on August 2, 1959. As there is no video footage of this match, Pelé asked that a computer animation be made of this specific goal. In March 1961, Pelé scored the gol de placa (goal worthy of a plaque), a goal against Fluminense at the Maracanã which was regarded as so spectacular that a plaque was commissioned with a dedication to the most beautiful goal in the history of the Maracanã.
At halftime, the Cosmos retired Pelé's number 10. Pelé presented his Cosmos shirt to his father, who was escorted to the field by Cosmos captain Werner Roth.
On 19 June 1958 Pelé became the youngest player to play in a World Cup final match at 17 years and 249 days. He scored two goals in the final as Brazil beat Sweden 5-2. His first goal, a lob over a defender followed by a precise volley shot, was selected as one of the best goals in the history of the World Cup. When the match ended, he passed out on the field, and had to be attended by the medical staff. He then recovered, and was visibly compelled by the victory, in tears as being congratulated by his teammates. He finished the tournament with six goals in four matches played, tied for second place, behind record-breaker Just Fontaine.
In the first match, against Czechoslovakia, Pelé gave Brazil a 2-1 lead after controlling Gerson's pass with his chest. Brazil went on to win the match, 4-1. On the first half of the match against England, he nearly scored with a header that was spectacularly saved by Gordon Banks. On the second half, he assisted Jairzinho for the only goal of the match. Against Romania, he opened the score on a direct free kick goal, a strong strike with the outside of his right foot. Later on the match he scored again to put the score 3-1. Brazil won by a final score of 3-2. In quarterfinals against Peru, Brazil won 4-2, with Pelé assisting Tostão on his team's third goal. In the semi-finals, Brazil faced Uruguay for the first time since the 1950 World Cup final round match. Jairzinho put Brazil ahead 2-1, and Pelé assisted Rivelino for the 3-1. During that match, Pelé made one of his most famous plays. Tostão gave Pelé a through ball, and Uruguay's goalkeeper Ladislao Mazurkiewicz took notice of it. The keeper ran off of his line to get the ball before Pelé, but Pelé got there first, and without touching the ball, he caused it to go past the keeper, to the latter's left, while Pelé went right. Pelé went around the goalkeeper and took a shot while turning towards the goal, but he turned in excess as he shot, and the ball drifted just wide of the far post.
He is now represented by Prime Licensing, a company created by Jose Alves de Araujo to launch a line of products to compete with the biggest names in fashion. In addition, Pelé signed a major autobiographical book deal in 2006, resulting in a giant-sized, 45cmx35cm, 2,500 unit limited-edition collectible "Pele", created by UK luxury publishers, Gloria, as the first-ever football 'big book'. In the same period, Pelé received a lifetime achievement award from the BBC and in June 2006, helped inaugurate the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals, alongside supermodel Claudia Schiffer. Pele has also helped to promote viagra and raise the awareness of impotency; it is not known whether he is afflicted by the condition himself though. |
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