December 30 – In a deeply polarized country, Pelé’s passing, an event Brazilians and football fans at large had hoped would never arrive, has provided a moment of rare national unity.
When the moment arrived, expected but deeply dreaded, Pelé’s death still shook Brazil and prompted an outpouring of grief and tributes around the world as well as non-stop coverage by the local media. Brazil’s famous Christ The Redeemer statue was lit up in the country’s colours to celebrate and commemorate Pelé’s life. Outside the Albert Einstein Hospital, where Pelé had been receiving treatment, a supporters banner had been draped that read ‘Eternal King Pele’.
Brazilian president elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva tweeted: “Few Brazilians have taken our country’s name as far as he did… He didn’t just play. He put on an all-out show.”
He had relished watching the greatest player of all time and added “there was never another number 10 like him. Thank you, Pelé.”
On Sunday, Lula, who already served two terms as president of Brazil, between 2003 and 2011, will be inaugurated as president of Brazil. At least 19 heads of states will attend the inauguration ceremony as Brazil turns a dark page following the reign of far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.
The incumbent declared three days of national mourning following the passing of the football icon at the age of 82 on Thursday following a long battle with colon cancer. The government of Bolsonaro said that Pele was “a great citizen and patriot, raising the name of Brazil wherever he went.”
On Monday, Santos, the legend’s hometown club, will stage a 24-hour wake at the Vila Belmiro Stadium, where Pelé excelled for 18 years, relentlessly delivering masterclass after masterclass and winning countless trophies. The following day, a parade carrying his coffin will go through the neighbourhood where his 100-year-old mother lives before a private burial.
It will be Pelé’s final journey and undoubtedly also a final tribute to the man who transcended both the game and his country, storming on to the world stage in 1958 as a teenager and cementing his place in the pantheon of the gods in 1970 with Brazil’s third World Cup victory.
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