Death of Pelé Shocks the World

December 29th, 2022 marked the death of one of the greatest and most influential soccer players in the world: Pelé. But who was Pelé? 

Pelé was a soccer legend who won three World Cups (1958, 1962 and 1970) and became soccer’s first global icon. Born on October 23, 1940, in Três Corações, Brazil under the name Edson Arantes do Nascimento, he made his international debut in 1957 at age 16. Although the Brazilian manager was initially hesitant to put the young Pelé out on the field, he was quickly proven wrong when Pelé rattled the post with one shot and collected an assist. In the World Cup finals against Sweden, he scored two goals, bringing back the win with a score of 5-2. After Brazil won the 1958 World Cup, he was declared a national treasure by the Brazilian government in order to stop him from taking big European deals. In 1962, he unfortunately tore a muscle in the second match and had to sit out, but Brazil took the World Cup anyway. On November 19th, 1969, he scored his one-thousandth goal in his 909th first-class match. In 1970, he teamed up with two young stars on his team to claim Brazil’s third World Cup. Pelé finished his World Cup career with twelve goals in fourteen games. 

After playing internationally for almost twenty years, Pelé finally announced his retirement, later publishing several bestselling autobiographies, starring in documentaries, and composing soundtracks. Life was good for Pelé until August of 2021, when he was diagnosed with colon cancer. For the next year, he battled cancer, but to no avail. In November of 2022, Pelé was admitted to the hospital for a respiratory infection and complications due to colon cancer. His health had worsened and his cancer had progressed. He died on Thursday, December 29th, from multiple organ failure. 

Several soccer stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo immediately went on social media and posted their goodbyes. Fellow Brazilian player Neymar said that Pelé turned soccer into an entertainment, gave voice to poor Black people, and gave visibility to Brazil. Rising star Kylian Mbappé also took to social media, saying, “The king of football (soccer) has left us but his legacy will never be forgotten.” Even the incoming president of Brazil, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, took to Twitter to pay respects to Pelé. Everyone around the world seemed to come together to pronounce one magic word: Pelé. 

As Mbappé said, Pelé’s legacy will never be forgotten, like his determination and prowess on the field. Little boys and girls around the world will continue to be inspired by his skill. Pelé will be forever remembered and admired by all.