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Pele AKA Edson Arantes do Nascimento
Was born on Oct. 23, 1940, in Tres Coracoes, Brazil, He began playing for a local minor-league club when he was
a teenager. He made his debut with the Santos Football Club in 1956.. "Soccer in its purest form" was played
by Pele, a South American superstar who was the world's most famous and highest-paid athlete when he joined a North American
team in 1975. He led the Brazilian national soccer team to three World Cup victories in 1958, 1962, and 1970 and to permanent
possession of the Jules Rimet Trophy.The legendary athlete retired in 1974 but made a comeback in 1975 after accepting a reported
7-million-dollar contract for three years with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League. He said he came out
of retirement, not for the money, but to "make soccer truly popular in the United States." His farewell appearance was against
his old Santos club in1977.
In his career he played in 1,363 matches and scored 1,282 goals. His best season was
1958, when he scored 139 times.Pele, whose nickname does not mean anything, became a Brazilian national hero and was also
known as Perola Negra (Black Pearl).Was probably the greatest player to ever grace the field of football.
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