Brazil footballing legend and three-time World Cup winner, Pele, has died aged 82.
His family confirmed that he passed away on Thursday.
Pele's daughter, Kely Nascimento, is leading tributes to the man widely considered to be footballs first global superstar.
She wrote on Instagram: "Everything we are is thanks to you. We love you infinitely. Rest in peace."
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Pele had been treated for colon cancer, following surgery to remove a tumour in September 2021, and had required regular medical treatment, Mirror UK reports.
After being admitted back into hospital at the end of November to re-evaluate his cancer treatment, he was diagnosed with a respiratory infection before subsequently being moved to palliative care when his body became unresponsive to chemotherapy.
Doctors and nurses at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo duly made him as comfortable as possible, while his wife, Marcia Aoki, remained by his bedside.
Irish President Michael D Higgins has also paid tribute to the football legend.
He said: “It is with a deep sense of sadness that members of the football family throughout the world will have heard of the death of Edson Arantes do Nascimento, universally known and loved as Pelé.
"It is particularly poignant that Pelé should have died so soon after the World Cup, that greatest stage which he graced like no other. From his goals seen in black and white as a 17 year old in Sweden in 1958 to his technicolour triumph with arguably the greatest ever Brazilian team in Mexico twelve years later in 1970, Pelé’s name will always be synonymous with the World Cup as its only three time winner.
"Indeed his name will forever be synonymous with football itself, as perhaps the greatest player ever to play the game. In addition to his remarkable talent and record breaking goal scoring feats, the sheer joy with which he embraced the game will continue to inspire and bring people to the sport for generations to come.
"That was a spirit which he brought beyond the pitch and reflected in his life after retirement, where he lent support to many humanitarian causes.
"I had the pleasure of meeting Pelé on a number of occasions in the 1980s and 1990s and our last meeting was on a working visit to Mexico in 2013 in Guadalajara. In each of our meetings I was struck by that same sense of joy with which he graced the football pitch.
"May I express my sympathies to his wife Marcia Aoki, to his children, to his wider family and to all his many friends and admirers throughout the world.”
Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pele made his international debut at the age of 16 and announced himself to a global audience in 1958, when, still only 17, he scored six goals in four games as Brazil won the World Cup for the first time. He scored twice in a 5-2 final win over Sweden in Stockholm.
He would win the World Cup on two more occasions, in 1962 and 1970, when the Selecao produced arguably the greatest final performance in the competition's history, defeating Italy 4-1 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico. Pele won the Golden Ball for the tournament's best player.
During the tournament, ex-Manchester City boss Malcolm Allison, working as a TV summariser, asked: "How do you spell Pele?" Counterpart Pat Crerand responded: "Easy: G.O.D."
His 1970 teammate Tostao remarked: "Pele was the greatest – he was simply flawless. And off the pitch he is always smiling and upbeat. You never see him bad-tempered. He loves being Pele.” Sir Bobby Charlton, part of the England side beaten 1-0 in the group stage of that tournament by Brazil, remarked later in life: “I sometimes feel as though football was invented for this magical player.”
Officially, Pele scored 757 goals in 831 games during a glittering career from 1957 to 1977, although his long-time club Santos claim his tally was closer to 1,000.
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