The biography of the King of Football is extensive. Besides playing “all” the football, Pelé was an advocate for humanitarian causes, a minister, an actor, a singer, and a commentator. With a resume like that, one could talk about his achievements for days. But to avoid holding anyone up for days, there are some facts about his life that are worth highlighting. Follow along below:
Promise to his father
After Brazil lost the 1950 World Cup final to Uruguay, the boy Edson Arantes do Nascimento saw his father devastated, crying, and made him a promise. “I remember telling him jokingly: ‘Don’t cry, dad – I will win the World Cup for you,’” Pelé recounted. We all know that eight years later, in 1958, his promise became a reality.
Pelé and his father Dondinho
His name is a tribute to Thomas Edison
As Pelé explained in a tweet in September 2014, his father João Ramos, a football player also known as Dondinho, and his mother Dona Celeste named him Edson in honor of Thomas Edison. “Electricity had just been introduced in my hometown in Brazil when I was born,” wrote the native of Três Corações. He was first nicknamed “Dico” by his family.
The origin of the nickname Pelé is “somewhat” unknown
The most likely explanation is that the nickname was given by peers because they mispronounced the name of one of his father’s football teammates: Vasco de São Lourenço, a goalkeeper affectionately known as “Bilé.” Pelé did not like the nickname.
“So, when someone would say: ‘Hey, Pelé,’ I would shout back and get angry. On one occasion, I punched a teammate because of it and got a two-day suspension,” he wrote. “Now I love the name – but back then it hurt me endlessly.”
His first contract didn’t pay the millions that are paid today
At 15, Pelé signed his first contract with Santos in 1956, earning around what would be $10 a month today. According to ESPN, he used one of his first salaries to buy a gas stove for his mother, even though his town did not have the capacity to channel gas to homes.
He is literally a Brazilian national treasure
After Pelé led the Brazilian national team to its first World Cup victory in 1958, European clubs like Real Madrid, Juventus, Inter Milan, and Manchester United began courting the rising star. To prevent him from being traded to foreign teams, Brazilian President Jânio Quadros ended up declaring Pelé a national treasure in 1961.
He is in the Guinness World Records
By the end of his career, Pelé had won three FIFA World Cups with Brazil, achieving the most victories by any player. Of course, this is just one of the many records he broke on the football field. The four goals Pelé scored in his professional debut in 1956 only set the stage for the total of 1,283 goals he would accumulate over the years. There is some debate about the total number of Guinness goals, as media outlets report that he scored over 500 of those goals in “unofficial friendlies and tour games,” and not in professional competitions.
Henry Kissinger convinced him to play in the United States
After Pelé retired from the Brazilian national team and Santos in 1974, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger traveled to São Paulo to convince him to return to play for the New York Cosmos. “He invited me to go to a café with him and there said: ‘Listen. You know I’m from the United States and I’m in politics there. Football is coming there – they’re playing in schools. Would you like to help us promote football in the United States?’”
He once (temporarily) stopped a war
A 1999 Time article reported that both sides of the Nigerian civil war called for a 48-hour ceasefire in 1967 so that Pelé could play an exhibition match in the capital Lagos. Santos’ website details that the military governor of the region, Samuel Ogbemudia, declared a holiday and opened a bridge so both sides could watch Pelé’s victory of 2-1 over Nigeria.
He was friends with Nelson Mandela
Pelé left family vacations to play in the charity match “90 Minutes for Mandela” in 2007, in honor of the 89th birthday of the South African president. During a joint press conference, Pelé presented Mandela with a signed shirt, which he called an “invaluable gift” that he would cherish for the rest of his life.
“He was my hero, my friend, and also a companion to me in our struggle for the people and for world peace,” Pelé tweeted after Mandela’s death in 2013, also calling the leader “one of the most influential people” in his life.
He played for both teams in his last professional game
Young Pelé and his family
In October 1977, Pelé played his last professional match in an exhibition game between the New York Cosmos and Santos F.C. in front of 77,000 spectators – including Muhammad Ali – at Giants Stadium in New Jersey. He played the first half for Santos, scoring a goal, then switched shirts and played for the Cosmos in the second half. The Cosmos ended up winning the match with a final score of 2–1.
He was honored by Queen Elizabeth II
Despite not being of British descent, Queen Elizabeth II awarded Pelé the honorary title of Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1997 for his humanitarian work and activism. Since 1994, Pelé has served as the Sports Champion of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, creating campaigns such as the fundraising Children in Need in 1996, and the Match of the Heart in 2000.
Kidnapping Threat in Lebanon
In 1960, on the way to Egypt, the team’s plane stopped in Beirut, where a crowd gathered threatening to kidnap Pelé if Santos did not agree to play against a Lebanese team.
“Fortunately, the police were firm and we flew to Egypt,” Pelé wrote in his autobiography.
Source: Bigraphy.com