Pelé, the Creator of Brazilian Soccer

I came to Brazil long after Pelé had played his last futbol match. But as a universal icon as recognizable as Elvis or Muhammed Ali, I knew of his legendary talent.

When I heard of Pelé’s passing and glanced through photos of him in various news articles, I unexpectedly found myself crying, along with millions of Brazilians and international fans. Who he was and what he represented became such a defining aspect of Brazilian identity, elevating Brazil’s status on the world stage through his dazzling performance, showing the potential brilliance of a country that had so much to offer but whose talents and richness of culture were often undermined by an inferiority complex. As a recent New York Times article points out, previous to Pelé, the Brazilian soccer teams were viewed internationally as a rag-tag team of “stray dogs”. He changed the game into a source of national pride and the succession of talented players that came after him became a class of celebrity and sports royalty, with Pelé as the reigning King.

Pelé’s unlikely rise to soccer stardom

Born in 1940, only 52 years after slavery was abolished in Brazil and coming from an impoverished family in a deeply racially divided country, Pelé’s rise to becoming one of the most recognizable names in the world was as implausible as Brazil ever winning the World Cup. But his drive and dedication to the sport led him to play in the 1958 World Cup in Sweden at just 17 years old. Pelé scored the third goal in a match against the host country’s team, seen as the tipping point of the game and, after Brazil’s 5–2 victory earned them their first World Cup, he wept inconsolably as his teammates hoisted him up and carried him across the field. According to interviews he gave after the match, during the long flight back to Brazil, he didn’t sleep, wondering if his family was aware that he had led Brazil’s team to winning their first World Cup. Little did he know that awaiting him at home was a crowd of fans the likes of which he could never have imagined. He was carried through the streets as a national hero and had to have the military escort him home through the throng of his admirers. He went on to achieve remarkable feats as an athlete, holding the record as the only player to win three World Cup titles, scoring over 1200 goals in his career and being recognized as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century.

Criticisms of Pelé

The one thing Pelé has most often been criticized for is not speaking out against the military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from 1964–1985. Many compare him to other sports figures who were his contemporaries in the US such as legendary boxer Muhammed Ali, who faced incarceration by refusing to be drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. Ali’s open criticisms of racial injustice in the US made him as recognized for his political dissent as for his athletic accomplishments. In contrast, when questioned in interviews about his political views, Pelé often deflected the questions, stating that his business was football, not politics. He was frequently used by the dictatorship as a symbol of Brazil’s power and in a climate where people who openly defied the regime’s requests were severely punished, Pelé chose to acquiesce when called upon.

Paving the way for future players

What Pelé gave to Brazil was a sense of identity, a win they desperately needed. I’m not a football fan, don’t go out of my way to watch matches besides the occasional match during the World Cup. But even I know the names of Brazil’s recent superstar players; Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Kaká, and Neymar stand on the shoulders of the foundation that Pele built. Much has been made of Pelé’s “ginga” and “samba” style of playing, the sway and swivel that incorporates the bodily movements that Brazil is famous for in its capoeira (dance-like Brazilian martial arts adopted by African slaves) and its samba (Brazilian dance that involves tempo-defying footwork with the hips serving as the body’s fulcrum). As Pelé put it, “the head talks to the heart and the heart talks to the feet.” This style of playing has defined Brazilian soccer. Sports writers have written extensively on the unique aesthetics of the Brazilian game, whose elegance and playfulness are elevated to an art form that draw tears as well as cheers. When compared to the more aggressive and warlike game played by their top rival, the Argentines, or the technical prowess of the Spanish leagues, the efficiency of the Germans, or the aggressive competitiveness of the French and English leagues, it’s Brazil whose style has been called “the beautiful game.” And it was Pelé who gave birth to that game.

Quotes about Pelé

“I was born to play football, just like Beethoven was born to write music and Michelangelo was born to paint.”

— Pelé

“An artist in my eyes is someone who can lighten up a dark room. I have never and will never find difference between the pass from Pele to Carlos Alberto in the final of the World Cup in 1970 and the poetry of the young Rimbaud. There is in each of these human manifestations an expression of beauty which touches us and gives us a feeling of eternity.”

— French star Eric Cantona

“Pele was one of the few who contradicted my theory: instead of 15 minutes of fame, he will have 15 centuries.”

— Andy Warhol

“The difficulty, the extraordinary, is not to score 1,000 goals like Pele — it’s to score one goal like Pele.”

— Carlos Drummond de Andrade

“My name is Ronald Reagan, I’m the President of the United States of America. But you don’t need to introduce yourself, because everyone knows who Pele is.”

— Ronald Reagan

“Pele is the greatest player of all time. He reigned supreme for 20 years. All the others — Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini — rank beneath him. There’s no one to compare with Pele.”

— Franz Beckenbauer

“Muhammad Ali was waving to the crowd, blowing kisses, doing the Muhammad Ali thing. As soon as he walked into the locker room and saw Pele…he was like a star-struck child.”

— Shep Messing

“Pele is the greatest player in football history, and there will only be one Pele.”

— Cristiano Ronaldo

“To watch him play was to watch the delight of a child combined with the extraordinary grace of a man in full.”

— Nelson Mandela

The future of Brazilian soccer

Unlike during Pelé’s time, today’s Brazilian talents don’t stay in Brazil for long, and it’s common for talented young players still in their teens to sign contracts with European teams capable of paying the high salaries that their talents demand. So common has this become that the legions of top Brazilian players with contracts abroad were once labelled as “invaders from Brazil” by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Even in the tiny town where I used to live in the Pantanal, I knew several young men who had travelled abroad to play for European teams.

While talented players existed before Pelé, he was the one who made soccer into a national product. He elevated the bar in Brazil and made the nation believe that it could achieve excellence beyond what anybody had previously thought possible. The players who have emerged in his wake carry his legacy with them. Over the years, their demand abroad has made Brazilian players a top international export. But perhaps one day we’ll see the homecoming of Brazil’s players, harvesting the seeds of national pride on Brazilian soil with a top international league worthy of Pele’s legacy.

Salve Pelé! Rest in peace.