Football legend Pelé dies at 82

Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Brazil football legend Pelé has died at the age of 82.

Pelé was widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. He remains the only man to have won the World Cup on three separate occasions.

He helped Brazil to World Cup glory at the 1958, 1962 and 1970 tournaments. The football legend also won the Golden Ball for best player at the latter.

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At the 1958 World Cup, the then-17-year-old emerged the youngest player to appear at a men’s World Cup. This beautiful record was later broken by Northern Ireland’s Norman Whiteside.

Pelé was recorded to have scored 1,283 times in 1,363 senior appearances for clubs and country during his 21-year football career. This number has been a subject of controversy however as it included tour matches and unofficial friendly games.

During his illustrious career, Pelé won six Campeonato Brasileiro Série A titles with Brazilian club, Santos. He also claimed two Copa Libertadores trophies, as well as two Intercontinental Cups and one Intercontinental Supercup.

The legend went on to play in the United States, featuring for New York Cosmos. He was an instrumental part of the team as they won the North American Soccer League (NASL) in 1977.

In addition to that, he was named in the NASL all-star team on three occasions during his time in the North American nation.

Pelé’s long battle with cancer

Before his demise, Pelé was in and out of the hospital due to ill health. He had a tumour removed from his colon in September 2021 and had been on regular treatment as he continued to battle cancer.

On 30 November, he was admitted to the Albert Einstein Hospital with “general swelling.” This made him undergo several tests for a more in-depth assessment of his health condition.

It was also reported that the 82-year-old was experiencing cardiac issues and his medical staff were worried that his chemotherapy treatment was not returning the expected results.

Also, a medical report from 21 December revealed that Pele’s cancer had worsened. His daughter then stated that the family would spend Christmas in hospital with the legend following revelations by the medical staff that he needed treatment for kidney and heart trouble.