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• Pelé is in third place on the list of all-time top goalscorers in international matches between National Teams; in 92 appearances for the Brazil national football team, he scored 77 goals. He is in fourth place behind Ronaldo, Gerd Müller, and Just Fontaine on the list of goalscorers in World Cup matches, with 12 goals. He has been part of three World Cup-winning teams, although he did not play in the 1962 final due to injury and did not receive a medal. Pelé is one of only four footballers to have achieved the feat of scoring in two different World Cup final matches, sharing that honor with Paul Breitner, Vavá, and Zinedine Zidane.^[39] He is one of five players to have scored twice from direct free kicks in World Cups (The others are Rivelino, Teófilo Cubillas, Bernard Genghini, and David Beckham). He is one of only two players to have scored in four World Cups (the other being Uwe Seeler, who did it in the same four tournaments as Pelé).

Pelé and Bill Clinton in 1997

• Contrary to other players, Pele's 1281 goals are recognized by FIFA with all his goals tracked, the highest totals achieved by a professional footballer. All of these goals have been checked by more than one recognized statistic institution. Pele played between 1957 and 1973 against the defenders from National teams of England, Italy, USSR, France, Germany etc and teams like Boca Juniors, Milan, Peñarol, Benfica, São Paulo etc not just in official championships but also in short term International Tournaments between European and South American teams – a very common event in 1960s. Some even claim that the goals scored in those tournaments could not count since according with these people criteria all those were "friendly games".

• In 1974 Pelé played a friendly match with Lebanese football club Nejmeh. ^[40][41]

• Due to the sheer size of Brazil and the problems and costs related to air travel at the time, until 1959 there was nothing that could be called a National Football Tournament between the best teams from across the whole of Brazil. Generally the Brazilian football season was occupied first by state championships (between teams of the same state), followed by the Torneio Rio-São Paulo, a competition between the teams from the two strongest states in the country, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. And last but not least, from 1959, by the national team competition. This league system provided all the players (i.e., no foreign-based players) for the 1958, 1962 and 1970 Brazil World Cup Champions.^[42]

• Given the global economic conditions and the football regulations at the time (especially in Brazil) the only players who left the Brazilian leagues for the European ones were usually those who could not get a regular place in one of the top teams or who were at the end of their careers. Sometimes a great player who were eclipsed by more talented footballer in his position, in an era when substitutions during the matches weren’t not allowed did this change as Mazzola for example, after lose his position in Brazilian National team to Pele went to Italy and became an idol there playing the 1962 World Cup for Squadra Azzurra (in those times a player who had done a World Cup for one country wasn't forbidden to play another cup for another country), same as Filó already had done in 1930s. Back to Pele's era, Julinho was another Brazilian who, without opportunity in Brazil, made success in Italy. Canario was another player who after losing his position to Garrincha in Botafogo and in the Brazilian National Team went to Spain and became champion of the Spanish league in the 1960s. For this reason, some argue that it was the world's strongest league during the years of Pelé's career even taking into account the state priority nature of the "league". It must be added that contrary to most European national championships – which had only two or three leading teams – in what could be called the Brazilian National Championship there were 11 direct competitors for the national cup: Santos]], Botafogo, Palmeiras, Flamengo, Corinthians, São Paulo FC, Vasco, Fluminense, Bahia, Cruzeiro and Atlético. Despite this, Santos won it five times in a row.

• At that time the Santos team spent a third or sometimes almost half of the year in the São Paulo State League, even when running for the South American Teams Cup or others international tournaments. Before Pelé's era the cup of the São Paulo League was monopolized by the so-called "Iron Trio", the three most prestigious teams of São Paulo city, the capital of São Paulo: Corinthians, Palmeiras and São Paulo FC.

• Some of the best players were also spread around teams all across Brazil, for example Didi, Garrincha and Jairzinho played in the Rio de Janeiro League, Tostão, Piazza and Dario played in the Minas Gerais League and others like Carlos Alberto, Zito, Pepe and Gilmar played with Pelé for Santos. There were many others playing for Santos' rivals in the São Paulo league like Rivelino and later Garrincha by Corinthians; Gérson, Pedro Rocha and Pablo Forlán by São Paulo FC; Félix, Djalma Santos and Zé Maria by Portuguesa and Leão, Luís Pereira, Leivinha and Ademir da Guia by Palmeiras just to mention a few. All of these great teams and players played against Pelé in this Tournament between 1957 and 1974. As of 2007 and since 1971, teams from the São Paulo state have won 16 of a possible 37 national league cups (see Titles by state).

After football

Pelé, right, with Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, left, and First Lady Marisa, July 13, 2004.

The most notable area of Pelé's life since football is his ambassadorial work for various bodies. In 1992, Pelé was appointed a United Nations ambassador for ecology and the environment. He was awarded Brazil's Gold Medal for outstanding services to the sport in 1995, Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso appointed him to the position of "Extraordinary Minister for Sport" and he was appointed a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. During this time he proposed legislation to reduce corruption in Brazilian football, which became known as the Pelé law. Pelé left his position in 2001 after he was accused of involvement in a corruption scandal.^[43] In 1997 he was given an honorary British knighthood.

Pelé scouted for Premier League Fulham in 2002.^[44] He was chosen to do the draw for the qualification groups for the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals.^[45]

Pelé has published several autobiographies, starred in documentary and semi-documentary films and composed various musical pieces, including the entire soundtrack for the film Pelé in 1977. He appeared, alongside other footballers of the 1960s and 1970s, Michael Caine, and Sylvester Stallone, in the 1981 film Escape to Victory, about an attempted escape from a World War II Nazi POW Camp. Pelé was one of the first black persons to be featured on the cover of Life magazine, and was the first sports figure featured in a video game with the Atari 2600 game Pelé's Soccer.

Pelé at Bramall lane, celebrating Sheffield F.C.'s 150th anniversary

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.^{[citation needed]} In addition, Pelé signed a major autobiographical book deal in 2006, resulting in a giant-sized, 45 cm × 35 cm, 2,500 unit limited-edition collectible "Pelé", 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. Pelé has also helped to promote viagra and raise the awareness of impotency.^[46]

Pelé was guest of honour at the world's oldest football club, Sheffield F.C.'s 150th anniversary match v Inter Milan in November 2007. Inter won 5–2 in front of an appreciative crowd of nearly 19,000 at Bramall Lane. As part of his visit, Pelé opened an exhibition which included the first public showing in 40 years of the original hand written rules of football.^[47]

Acting and film career

• Os Estranhos (1969) (TV Series)
• O Barão Otelo no Barato dos Bilhões (1971)
• A Marcha (1973)
• Os Trombadinhas (1978)
• Escape to Victory (1981)
• A Minor Miracle (1983)
• Pedro Mico (1985)
• Os Trapalhões e o Rei do Futebol (1986)
• Hotshot (1987)
• Solidão, Uma Linda História de Amor (1990)
• Mike Bassett: England Manager (2001)
• ESPN SportsCentury (2004)

See also

• Lists of association football players
• The Beautiful Game

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Pelé

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Pelé

• Pele FIFA competition record
• National Soccer Hall of Fame - Pele
• BBC 2006 Vote World-Cup Greatest
• Video History of Pelé (from LikeTelevision)

v • d • e Brazil squad - 1958 FIFA World Cup Winners (1st Title) 1 Castilho • 2 Bellini • 3 Gilmar • 4 Djalma Santos • 5 Dino Sani • 6 Didi • 7 Zagallo • 8 Oreco • 9 Zózimo • 10 Pelé • 11 Garrincha • 12 Nílton Santos • 13 Moacir • 14 De Sordi • 15 Orlando • 16 Mauro • 17 Joel • 18 Mazola • 19 Zito • 20 Vavá • 21 Dida • 22 Pepe • Coach: Feola

v • d • e Brazil squad - 1962 FIFA World Cup Winners (2nd Title) 1 Gilmar • 2 Djalma Santos • 3 Mauro • 4 Zito • 5 Zózimo • 6 Nílton Santos • 7 Garrincha • 8 Didi • 9 Coutinho • 10 Pelé • 11 Pepe • 12 Jair Marinho • 13 Bellini • 14 Jurandir • 15 Altair • 16 Zequinha • 17 Mengálvio • 18 Jair da Costa • 19 Vavá • 20 Amarildo • 21 Zagallo • 22 Castilho • Coach: Moreira

v • d • e Brazil squad - 1966 FIFA World Cup 1 Gilmar • 2 Djalma Santos • 3 Fidélis • 4 Bellini • 5 Brito • 6 Altair • 7 Orlando • 8 Paulo Henrique • 9 Rildo • 10 Pelé • 11 Gérson • 12 Manga • 13 Denílson • 14 Lima • 15 Zito • 16 Garrincha • 17 Jairzinho • 18 Alcindo • 19 Silva • 20 Tostão • 21 Paraná • 22 Edu • Coach: Feola

v • d • e Brazil squad - 1970 FIFA World Cup Winners (3rd Title) 1 Félix • 2 Brito • 3 Piazza • 4 Carlos Alberto • 5 Clodoaldo • 6 Marco Antônio • 7 Jairzinho • 8 Gérson • 9 Tostão • 10 Pelé • 11 Rivelino • 12 Ado • 13 Roberto • 14 Baldocchi • 15 Fontana • 16 Everaldo • 17 Joel • 18 Paulo César • 19 Edu • 20 Dario • 21 Zé Maria • 22 Leão • Coach: Zagallo