BY: Aditya Mallick
“As soon as I’ve made some money, I’ll buy a house for mum.” Pele was 15 when he spoke those words to his father, and years later he’d make good on his promise. But first, there was a career to start.
Pele’s First Senior Match and First Goal (1956)
Pele made his first senior professional start for Santos — against Santo Andre's Corinthians — shortly before turning 16.
He obviously scored during the game. He scored shortly after coming on to replace Del Vecchio in the second half, pouncing on a rebound after Pepe's initial shot. Of the more than 1,200 goals he would score while playing, it was one of the simpler ones.
Brazilian national team debut (1957 Copa Roca)
On July 7, 1957, the most famous player in Brazilian history made his debut in a two-day friendly tournament against Argentina. Despite the fact that Brazil was defeated 2-1, the 16-year-old came on as a substitute and scored his team's only goal in the 32nd minute. Three days later, Brazil avenged itself on its archrival, winning 2-0 thanks to goals from Pele and Mazzola. From then on, there was no looking back for the 'Black Pearl'. Pele also recalled that.
"I was chosen, and it was beautiful." Pele remembers. "It was like a nightmare."
AP Photo
Winning Brazil’s first World Cup (1958 Sweden)
Pele scored six goals in four games, including two in the final, which Brazil won 5-2. Pele's first goal is considered one of the best in World Cup history, as he flicked the ball over a defender and volleyed home, and his second goal was a looping header over the 'keeper that sealed the game.
"I felt like applauding after the fifth goal," Swedish opponent Sigge Parling said after the game.
Brazil's 5-2 victory over the hosts in the final, as well as Pelé's outstanding performance alongside another football genius, Garrincha, were enough to draw the world's attention to the player who would later be crowned 'Athlete of the Century'.
“When we arrived in Sweden, no one knew what Brazil was. They know about Argentina ...Uruguay. It was a surprise for us,” recalls Pele – who, at 17 and seven months, became the youngest person to play in a World Cup until Northern Ireland’s Norman Whiteside took that record in 1982.
“I thought the whole world knew about Brazil, but in Sweden, nothing,” he adds. “Then, when we won the World Cup, everybody knew about Brazil. I think this was the most important thing I gave to my country because we were well known after that World Cup.”
Winning the 1970 World Cup, Mexico
Pele contemplated retiring before the 1970 tournament in light of what he had accomplished before turning 30 years old, but after informing his club team Santos of his intentions, he had a change of heart.
"I said Santos are champion, I am going to retire," he recalls. "Then I said 'No, I am going to play the World Cup. This will be my last World Cup, may God give me one more time the gift to play good'."
Brazil's failure to successfully defend its title in 1966 forced the nation's super star to compete in World Cup qualifiers, where Pele scored six goals in six games. His four goals earned him the 'Player of the Tournament' award, and he capped off his best season by setting up Carlos Alberto for one of the greatest goals in World Cup history in the final against Italy.
However, he saved his best performances for the World Cup itself.
"We won the World Cup, and I think in my life in sport (that was the pinnacle), no doubt," he said.
Italian defender Tarcisio Burgnich summed up Pele’s magic fittingly: "I told myself before the game, he’s made of skin and bones just like everyone else. But I was wrong."
A moment where Pele didn’t score also went down in World Cup history – England goalkeeper Gordon Banks’ incredible block from the Brazilian’s powerful header is widely considered to be the greatest save of all time.
After retirement, Pele joined New York Cosmos in 1975
The New York Cosmos made the announcement that Pele was joining the team on June 10, 1975. The three-year, $2.8 million deal Pele signed made him the highest-paid athlete in the world at that time. When he joined the team, the forward was 34 years old and had not participated in any competitive football for eight months. In three years, he amassed 37 goals and 30 assists, winning the 1976 NASL MVP award and helping the team win the 1977 Soccer Bowl.
At New York's Downing Stadium against the Dallas Tornado, he made his club debut. In the 2-2 draw, he scored one goal and provided one assist. His career came to an end on October 1, 1977, when he lost to Santos in front of a packed Giants Stadium.
The live broadcast of Pele's debut game on CBS attracted ten million viewers, setting a record for football on American television. In just the first half of the season Pele was there, the Cosmos' home attendance tripled. The average attendance for the league had increased from 7,642 to 13,558 by the time he retired in 1977, nearly doubling.
