Pelé, the Brazilian football legend, who many regard as the greatest player of all time, has died in hospital in Sao Paulo at the age of 82. He had been undergoing treatment for colon cancer since last year.
As a 17-year-old, Pelé won his first football or soccer World Cup, in 1958, going on to lift the top trophy in the game a further two times, in 1962 and 1970. He scored a world record 1,281 goals, playing in 1,363 games during his professional career, which began when he was just 15.
Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, in 1940, the football giant, nicknamed, “the Black Pearl”, and “the King”, retired from the game in 1977.
He devoted considerable time in retirement to supporting the UN and its work, both as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Children’s Fund UNICEF, and as a UNESCO Champion for Sport, from 1994.
He was also appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the crucial UN Earth Summit, in Rio de Janeiro, in 1992, one of the first major global development and environment summits devoted to a more sustainable future for all. UN NEWS.
