Pelé is a retired Brazilian professional footballer who has built a highly-reputable name in the sports industry due to his achievements and unmatched contributions to the world of football. During his early years as a professional footballer, he won 3 FIFA World Cups for the years 1958, 1962, and 1970, making him the only player to hit 3 consecutive wins in a row. With his countless wins, he became the most successful domestic league goal-scorer with an unmatched winning record of 650 goals out of 694 league matches and with a total of 1281 goals in 1363 games. He is one of Brazil’s greatest players in football history and for once he was recognized as the best-paid athlete in the world.
At the age of 15, he began playing for Santos FC and was later introduced to the Brazil national team at the age of 16. His exceptional style play had brought him and his team closer to fame during the early years of his playing career. During Pelé’s time with Santos, he played alongside other football legends in Brazil including Zito, Pepe, and . Even after his retirement in 1977, he remains on top of the list of Brazil’s greatest players of all time. Before and after his exit from his professional career as a footballer, he was given countless individual and team awards for his record-breaking achievements and overall performance as an athlete.
Sun Sign
Scorpio
Nationality
Education
Pele graduated from Metropolitan University of Santos in 1974. Due to his successful contribution in the field of sports, human welfare, and environment, he was given the honorary degree from the University of Edinburgh in 2012.
Manager
Pelé is represented by Pelé Comércio Empreendimentos Participações Ltda, Santos, São Paulo, Brazil.
Position
- Forward
- Attacking midfielder
Shirt Number
10 – Santos FC
10 – New York Cosmos
Girlfriend / Spouse
Pelé has dated –
- Anizia Machado (1964) – Pelé was linked with housemaid Anizia Machado in 1964 and the couple allegedly had 2 children together.
- Rosemeri dos Reis Cholbi (1966–1982) – Pelé married Rosemeri dos Reis Cholbi on February 21, 1966. They have 3 children together – 2 daughters named Kelly Christina (b. January 13, 1967) and Jennifer (b. 1978), and a son named Edson (August 27, 1970). The couple got divorced in 1982 following 16 years of marriage.
- Lenita Kurtz (1968) – Pelé reportedly had an extramarital affair with journalist Lenita Kurtz whom he had 1 daughter with named Flávia.
- Maria da Graça “Xuxa” Meneghe (1981-1986) – He was dating television host Xuxa from 1981 to 1986, but the two had no plans of tying the knot. At the time, Xuxa was only 17 years old.
- Assíria Lemos Seixas (1994–2008) – In 1994, Pelé got married to his second wife, singer Assíria Lemos Seixas with whom he had twins named Joshua and Celeste on September 28, 1996. After 14 years of marriage, the two decided to call it quits in 2008.
- Marcia Aoki (2010-Present) – He got married to his third wife Marcia Aoki in 2016, who he had been dating since 2010.
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Big Eyes
- Thin Lips
- Downward Pointed Nose
Brand Endorsements
Pelé has endorsed brands such as –
- Puma
- Hublot
- Volkswagen
- Subway
- Emirates and Procter & Gamble
- Santander
- YipTV
- Golazo
Best Known For
- His performance in the 1958 World Cup
- Winning 3 FIFA World Cups before joining New York Cosmos
- Being one of Brazil’s greatest players of all time in football history
First Football Match
On September 7, 1956, he made his debut as a professional with Santos FC in a match against Corinthians Santo Andre.
on July 7, 1957, he made his international debut in a match against Argentina during which he also scored his first goal for Brazil.
First Film
In 1959, he made his feature film debut as ‘Himself’ in O Preço da Vitória.
First TV Show
Apart from the broadcast of his football matches, he made his first TV show appearance in Os Estranhos as Plínio Pompeu in 1969.
Pelé Favorite Things
- Football Player – Bile
Source –
Pelé Facts
- Growing up in poverty, Pelé and his friends had dubbed themselves as “The Shoeless Ones”.
- He was named after the American Inventor, Thomas Edison.
- His first nickname was ‘Dico’.
- Pelé used to work as a servant in tea shops to earn extra money.
- He was named ‘Pelé’ during his high school days.
- Pelé was hailed as a national hero in Brazil because of his accomplishments and contributions in football history as well as for his evident support to the policies that improve the social conditions of the poor.
- In 2000, he was named “Footballer of the Century”.
- In 2010, Pelé was named the Honorary President of the New York Cosmos.
- He was first introduced to football indoor before he made his debut as a professional football player.
- Pelé scored his first goal in Brazil at the age of 16, which made him the youngest goalscorer in his country.
- He has always been looked up to as one of the greatest players of all time.
- He was dubbed as the best-rated player in the world during the 1962 World Cup.
- Pelé was given an honorary knighthood from at a ceremony held in Buckingham Palace.
- Pelé had gone through various health problems during both of his early and later years. In 1977, it was reported that he had his right kidney removed. In 2017, Pelé was seen in a wheelchair while attending the World Cup draw in Moscow during which he was photographed with Russian President and .
- He holds the Guinness World Record for most career goals scored in football for having scored 1283 goals in 1363 games.
- In his career, he had scored 92 hat-tricks in football.
- Visit his official website @ Pele10.com.
- Connect with Pelé on and .
Featured Image by John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com / / CC-BY-SA-2.0
Facts of Edson Arantes do Nascimento
- Gender Male
- full nameEdson Arantes do Nascimento
- middle nameArantes
- nicknamesDico, Pelé
- birthplaceTrês Corações, Minas Gerais, Brazil
- Date of Birth October 23, 1940
- Age 84 years 1 months
- Horoscope Scorpio
- Lucky Number 2
- Lucky Stone Garnet
- Lucky Color Purple
- Best Match for Marriage Capricorn, Cancer, Pisces
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundAfro-Brazilian
- nationalityBrazilian
- net worth$100 million
- professionRetired Professional Football Player, Humanitarian
- weight74 kg or 163 lbs
- height5 ft 8 in or 173 cm
- hair colorBlack
- eye colorDark Brown
- body type / buildAthletic
- collegeMetropolitan University of Santos
- motherCeleste Arantes
- fatherJoão Ramos do Nascimento