Fans mourn Pelé at public viewing in Brazil stadium
SANTOS, Brazil (AP) — Thousands of mourners, together with highschool college students and supreme court docket justices, started submitting previous the physique of Pele on Monday on the century-old subject the place he made his hometown crew certainly one of Brazil’s finest.
The soccer nice died on Thursday after a battle with most cancers. The solely participant ever to win three World Cups was 82.
Pele’s coffin, draped within the flags of Brazil and the Santos FC soccer membership, was positioned on the midfield space of Vila Belmiro, the stadium exterior Sao Paulo that was his house for many of his profession. A Catholic Mass will likely be celebrated there Tuesday morning earlier than his burial at a close-by cemetery. Brazil’s newly inaugurated President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will come to Vila Belmiro shortly earlier than Pele’s coffin is faraway from the stadium.
The storied 16,000-seat stadium was surrounded by mourning followers, and coated with Pele-themed decorations inside.
Fans popping out of the stadium mentioned they’d waited three hours in line, standing underneath a blazing solar.
Forty-five years after Pele performed his final sport, he’s nonetheless a central a part of Brazil’s nationwide story.
Geovana Sarmento, 17, got here along with her father carrying a Brazil shirt with Pele’s identify.
“I am not a Santos fan, neither is my father. But this guy invented Brazil’s national team. He made Santos stronger, he made it big, how could you not respect him? He is one of the greatest people ever, we needed to honor him,” she mentioned.
In the Nineteen Sixties and 70s, Pele was maybe the world’s most well-known athlete. He met presidents and queens, and in Nigeria a civil conflict was placed on maintain to observe him play. Many Brazilians credit score him with placing the nation on the world stage for the primary time.
Caio Zalke, 35, an engineer, additionally wore a Brazil shirt as he waited in line. “Pele is the most important Brazilian of all time. He made soccer important for Brazil and he made Brazil important for the world,” he mentioned.
Rows of shirts with Pele’s quantity 10 have been positioned behind one of many targets, waving in metropolis’s summer time winds. A piece of the stands was filling up with bouquets of flowers positioned by mourners and despatched by golf equipment and star gamers — Neymar and Ronaldo amongst them — from all over the world as loudspeakers performed a music named “Eu sou Pele” (“I am Pele”) that was recorded by the Brazilian himself.
Claudio Carranca, 32, a salesman, mentioned: “I never saw him play, but loving Pele is a tradition that goes from father to son in Santos. I learned his history, saw his goals, and I see how Santos FC is important because he is important. I know some Santos fans have children supporting other teams. But that’s just because they never saw Pele in action. If they had, they would feel this gratitude I feel now.”
Santos FC mentioned that greater than 1,100 journalists from 23 nations have been on the funeral. Dignitaries and associates of Pele in attendance spoke on the funeral.
Among them was Pele’s finest pal Manoel Maria, who can also be a former Santos participant. “If I had all the wealth in the world I would never be able to repay what this man did for me and my family. He was as great a man as he was as a player; the best of all time. His legacy will outlive us all. And that can be seen in this long line with people of all ages here.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino informed journalists that each nation ought to identify a stadium after Pele.
“I am here with a lot of emotion, sadness, but also with a smile because he gave us so many smiles,” Infantino mentioned. “As FIFA, we will pay a tribute to the ‘King’ and we ask the whole world to observe a minute of silence.”
Another fan and pal in line 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 international fame, and that he deserves each tribute.
Pele’s casket will likely be ushered by means of the streets of Santos earlier than his burial Tuesday.
Pele had undergone remedy for colon most cancers since 2021. The medical middle the place he had been hospitalized mentioned he died of a number of organ failure because of the most cancers.
Pele led Brazil to World Cup titles in 1958, 1962 and 1970 and stays one of many crew’s all-time main scorers with 77 targets. Neymar tied Pele’s report throughout this 12 months’s World Cup in Qatar.
