Brazil wakes up Friday for the first time in 82 years without Pelé, the “King” of football who died the day before and for whom the country begins a three-day national mourning, accompanied by planetary condolences.
After the death of Elizabeth II in September, it is another major figure of the 20th century who disappears in 2022, sparking reactions from the world of football, but also from politics, culture, etc.
The health of Pelé, the only winner of three World Cups and considered by many to be the best player of all time, had been shaky for a few months: he had been battling colon cancer, and had been hospitalized at the end of November in Sao Paulo.
“We love you to infinity, rest in peace”: it is with these words, published on Instagram, that one of his daughters, Kely Nascimento, announced the death of the most famous Brazilian in history , surrounded by several members of his family for a few days at Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo.
A few hours later, a decree announced an “official mourning” for three days, “a mark of respect following the death of Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pelé”, following colon cancer.
A funeral wake, open to the public, will take place on Monday and will last 24 hours, at the stadium of Santos FC, the club where the eternal number 10 shone from 1956 to 1974.
The funeral on Tuesday, on the other hand, will take place in the intimacy of the family, following a procession following the coffin in the streets of Santos, a port city 80 km from Sao Paulo which has decreed for its part a mourning of seven days.
In front of the Paulista hospital where the triple world champion died, fans held up a banner which read: “Eternal King Pelé”. In Rio de Janeiro, the Christ the Redeemer of Corcovado, an emblematic monument which dominates the bay, was illuminated in homage to Pelé, as was the mythical Maracana stadium.
– “The biggest” –
“Mourning” for the “immortal king of football”, headlines the Brazilian daily O Globo on its site, with images of the player in the national jersey, in particular the iconic one, where all smiles, he raises his right arm, carried by his teammate Jairzinho seen from behind with his number 7.
The world of football expressed its emotion on social networks and drew the dimension of the character. “He made football an art,” wrote Neymar, his distant successor as number 10 of the Brazilian team, and who equaled his national record of 77 goals for the “Seleçao” at the Qatar World Cup.
Tributes also from superstars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé: “Rest in peace, Pelé”, wished the Argentinian, while the French noted that “his legacy will never be forgotten”.
The French Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane, the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, of course countless Brazilians, like ex-striker Ronaldo, all shared a few words and photos with the icon, “the greatest”, according to his former teammates Mario Zagallo (Brazil) and Franz Beckenbauer (Cosmos New York).
The political world has made a chorus, or team, to the highest peak of the state. In Brazil, of course: “Never has there been a number 10 like him,” responded President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who will be sworn in on Sunday. Outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro, for his part, hailed the memory of the man who “carried the name of Brazil around the world”.
Elsewhere, American Joe Biden hailed “a story of what is possible”, Frenchman Emmanuel Macron tweeted a triptych “The Game. The King. The Eternity.” and the Senegalese Macky Sall applauded “his virtuosity, his genius and his humanism”.
Pelé, voted Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee in 1999, was an outstanding athlete. There is his goal record – 1,281 in 1,363 matches for Santos, his club in Brazil (1956-74), Seleçao and New York Cosmos (1975-77), a record approved by Fifa.
But beyond the statistics, Pelé revolutionized football, emblematic player of “jogo bonito” (beautiful game) and of Brazil titled at the 1970 World Cup – “he was the greatest, and she was the most beautiful”, writes Vincent Duluc in the editorial of the French sports daily L’Equipe.
– Promise to his father –
Born on October 23, 1940 into a poor family in Tres Coraçoes, a small town in Minas Gerais (southeast) surrounded by coffee plantations, little Edson had to sell peanuts in the street to help his parents.
The legend says that, as a child, he saw his father cry during the “Maracanazo” of 1950, this defeat of Brazil once morest Uruguay depriving the country of the “futebol” of its first world title, and he promised him that he would. will win.
And he fulfilled his promise at 17, splashing the 1958 World Cup in Sweden with his goals and his class. In tears, he is carried in triumph by his teammates. He won the title once more in 1962, even if his tournament was cut short by an injury – another also cut short his participation in the 1966 edition. The 1970 World Cup, the first broadcast in color on television, marked his apotheosis.
He has since been a national and world monument, although, unlike the eternal rebel Diego Maradona or the idol of the Garrincha people, he was often seen in Brazil as a man close to the established power, including during the dictatorship. military (1964-1985).
His notoriety will also push him towards other fields – cinema, song and even politics, with a post of Minister of Sports (1995-1998), in parallel with an eventful personal trajectory – three marriages, seven children (recognized) and a telenovela life. Royal.
