His father was also a footballer nicknamed Dondinho, whose claim to fame was scoring five-headed goals in a match.
Here are the 7 amazing facts to know about the Brazilian soccer legend, Pele who died on Thursday, at age 82:
1. Edson Arantes do Nascimento, popularly called Pele was born October 23, 1940, and was named after the inventor of the lightbulb, Thomas Edison. The young Edson “Pelé” Arantes do Nascimento certainly showed plenty of invention in his career and lit up many a football pitch with his skills.
2. He was the only player to win three World Cups in football history.
3. Interestingly, Pelé got his nickname after he mispronounced the name of the Brazilian goalkeeper, Bilé, as Pelé. One of his classmates started to call him “Pelé” to tease him and the name stuck.
4. Pele scored 77 goals in 92 international matches for Brazil and 680 goals in official club matches.
5. The football legend served as Brazil’s Extraordinary Minister of Sport between 1995 and 1998. He also served as a United Nations ambassador for Ecology and the Environment.
6. His father was also a footballer nicknamed Dondinho, whose claim to fame was scoring five-headed goals in a match.
7. Pele married three (3) wives: Marcia Aoki, Assíria Nascimento, and Rosemeri dos Reis Cholbi, and had 7 children in his entire life.
