London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Oct 04, 2025

Pele: The player who united a nation

Pele was a footballing legend the world over, but for people in Brazil he was so much more. Outside the Albert Einstein hospital in São Paulo, fans started gathering when they heard the news of Pele passing. Some were dressed in the number 10 shirt Pele wore when playing for Santos. Outside a banner had been draped that read "Eternal King Pele".

This is a moment that Brazilians had been expecting for some time but also dreading. In recent weeks, Pele's daughter Kely Nascimento had taken to Instagram to keep his fans updated about his condition - every post or story fervently followed for any news of "O Rei" ("The King" in Portuguese).

When news eventually came of his passing, it was still a big moment. The hospital issued a statement confirming his death from multiple organ failure connected to his colon cancer but it was more than just a medical bulletin - it also said that the hospital shared the suffering felt by the family and everyone over the loss of "our beloved King of football".

That is a mark of just how important he was for Brazilians - while Pele was of course a footballing legend the world over, for people here, he was so much more.

President-elect, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is due to be sworn in on Sunday, said he had had the privilege of seeing Pele play, although he added it wasn't merely "playing", it was a "show".

"Few Brazilians took the name of our country as far as he did," he said in a tweet, adding that there was never another number 10 like him.

For every Brazilian, Pele meant something. The older generations remembered him as a player, the younger Brazilians were told about his phenomenal skills - but he united people in this footballing nation.

This is a country that defines itself by football. During the World Cup, Brazilians are given leave to watch their national team. Pele was cheering them on from his hospital bed, wishing them well. And so his death coming after the tournament he won three times is even more poignant.

These past few weeks, Brazilians have had time to reflect on his life, knowing that his condition was worsening. Even people with no interest in football refer to him as the King.

He was a footballer that stayed very Brazilian, playing for Santos for many years rather than playing for clubs abroad. In fact, president Janio Quadros in 1961 even declared him a national treasure, which meant for years he couldn't be "exported" to play for clubs abroad, such was his hero status and importance for national pride.

In a country where racism and classism are still so dominant, Pele, a black footballer from a poor background, was an incredible success story. He rarely talked about racism, a stance that he was at times criticised for. But he always championed the power of football to bring the nation together, to give opportunities to even the poorest Brazilians.

Pele was also known to keep his head down when it came to politics. Again, many felt that was a weak position given his huge influence - and of course the turbulent politics that he lived through - including a dictatorship. But in a country that has once again become increasingly divided when it comes to politics, this silence also allowed him to transcend politics, to be loved and respected universally as the King of all Brazilians, both on and off the field.

The greatest footballer of all time has now gone, but his memory here in Brazil will remain forever.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
×