Pele, one of the greatest footballers of all time, passed away on December 29 (Thursday) after a prolonged battle with cancer at the age of 82. The Brazilian is regarded as one of the finest to have graced the game and his passing away has left a huge impact on the sporting fraternity. The footballer won as many as three FIFA World Cups and made a mark with his magical skills and moves on the ground. During his illustrious career, Pele ended with many significant records up his sleeves.
Here are some major football records held by ‘Soccer King’ Pele:
A World Cup legend: Pele was a force to reckon with in FIFA WCs. He appeared in as many as four editions of the World Cup. Out of four, Brazil won in three of these editions (held in 1958, 1962 and 1970). In 1958, he scored five goals and provided an assist. While he had a forgettable run in 1962 — doe to injury concerns — and scored only once in 1966 in Brazil’s forgettable campaign, he made amends in his last WC in 1970; returning with four goals and providing six assists en route to win his third World Cup medal; most by any player to date. In his last WC, he was also adjudged the Player of the Tournament.
Pele also ended with second-most goals in FIFA WC history. He ended with a dozen goals in 14 matches along with providing eight assists to his teammates. At present, Lionel Messi leads the list with 13 strikes. Messi surpassed Pele only during the recently-held 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Most goals scored: The late footballer Pele holds the Guinness World Record for the most goals scored in the history of football. He found the back of the net on as many as 1,283 times in 1363 matches.
Most goals in a calendar year: Pele scored 127 goals for Santos in 1959 when he was only 18. Hence, as soon as he broke into the scene, Pele had won hearts and soon became a household name.
Most hat-tricks: This is an unbelievable feat. During his career, Pele scored a whopping 92 hat-tricks, most by any.
Youngest to appear, score, and win a FIFA WC final: At 17 years and 249 days, Pele appeared in his first-ever FIFA WC final in 1958 during Brazil versus Sweden tie. He scored a brace to become the youngest goal scorer in the final as Brazil went onto lift the title by beating the opposition 5-2. He had created havoc in his maiden FIFA WC, also being the youngest player to score in the tournament history (17 years and 239 days vs. Wales). In addition, he was the youngest to score a treble in the WC (17 years and 244 days which came against France). Pressure of playing a WC deters the best of the best. However, it didn’t bog down a young Pele.
Joint-leading goal scorer for Brazil: Pele ended with 77 goals in 92 games for the Men in Yellow. He is the joint-leading goal scorer for the five-time winners, along with Neymar. But the former pips Neymar if one includes the friendlies with Pele having scored 95 goals, which is the most by a Brazilian.
After the passing away of Pele, a three-day mourning is being observed in Brazil whereas reactions have been pouring in from all corners from the sporting fraternity for the legendary footballer. He is survived by six kids. Surely, his demise is a huge dent to the football arena.
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