(Sao Paulo) Brazil paid tribute to Pelé on Friday, the first anniversary of the legendary footballer’s death, notably in Santos where his career began, in Rio de Janeiro and also on social networks.
In Santos, near Sao Paulo, a mass was said at the museum which traces the career of the triple world champion (1958, 62, 70), who died on December 29, 2022 of colon cancer at the age of 82 years old.
It is in this city, where he played from 1956 to 1974, that the “King” rests, in a mausoleum visited by thousands of admirers since its inauguration in May.
PHOTO NELSON ALMEIDA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Pele in 2019
The club, the only one in Brazil where Edson Arantes do Nascimento played, published a video to commemorate the date and a photo accompanied by this caption: “A year without Edson, but Pelé is eternal”.
From the Santos stadium, Edinho, one of Pelé’s seven children, also released a dozen white balloons into the sky, according to images posted by the club on social networks.
This season, the club with the white and black jersey fell to the second division for the first time in its history.
In Rio de Janeiro, a ceremony was also held on the site of the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer, illuminated at nightfall in the colors of Pelé’s sweater, and during which a message from Pope Francis was read.
“The memory of the ‘King of Football’ remains indelible in the minds of many and pushes new generations to consider sport as a means of bringing people together,” the pope wrote in his letter, a copy of which was published on the deportivo.ge information site.
A religious ceremony took place in Pelé’s hometown Tres Coraçoes, in the state of Minas Gerais (southeast), in the church where he was baptized.
On Friday, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) published an article in tribute to the “greatest of all time”, emphasizing that his name had been given to several stadiums, including seven outside Brazil.
Finally, FIFA marked the event with a message on social networks: “A year ago we said goodbye to a legend”.