Fans lined up early Monday exterior the Vila Belmiro Stadium forward of Pele’s funeral in his hometown of Santos.
The Brazilian soccer nice died Thursday after a battle with most cancers. He was 82.
Pele scored among the finest targets of his profession on the 16,000-seat stadium exterior Sao Paulo. His funeral is scheduled begin at 10 a.m. native time, and the burial will happen in a vertical cemetery solely 600 metres away on Tuesday.
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Fans began arriving on the stadium within the early hours of Monday to pay their final respects to Edson Arantes do Nascimento, globally often called Pele.
One of them was Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes.
“It is a very sad moment, but we are now seeing the real meaning of this legendary player to our country,” Mendes informed journalists. “My office has shirts signed by Pele, a picture of him as a goalkeeper, also signed by him. DVDs, photos, a big collection of him.”
Mendes additionally mentioned Pele was a humble man regardless of his world fame, and that he deserves each tribute.
A person sits exterior the Vila Belmiro stadium in Santos, Brazil, the day earlier than the funeral of Brazilian soccer legend Pele on Jan. 1.
Matias Delacroix/AP
Inside the Vila Belmiro, a big tent has been set to put Pele’s coffin.
After Pele’s funeral, his casket will likely be ushered by way of the streets of Santos earlier than his burial. Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and different dignitaries are anticipated to attend.
Pele had undergone remedy for colon most cancers since 2021. The medical centre the place he had been hospitalized mentioned he died of a number of organ failure because of the most cancers.
