Yesterday Goal.com announced that Zinedine Zidane was the first man chosen to their website’s Hall of Fame. Each day this week, the largest Soccer site in the world will be announcing a member of their Class of 2014, all of which were voted on the public. It should be a surprise to absolutely nobody that the Pele was announced as another member to the Hall.
The accomplishments of Pele are staggering. He is the only player in FIFA World Cup history to have won the championship three times (Brazil 1958, 1962 and 1970). He is the leading scorer all time for Brazil netting 77 Goals, and had 619 Goals for his Brazillian club team, Santos, the team he took to two Copa Libertadores championships (1962 & 1963). He was named the Player of the Century by multiple publications. Pele would also carry the North American Soccer League on his back, and though the league failed, Pele was a star in the United States at a time when the county had limited interest in the sport.
Calling Pele a star does not seem like enough. He wasn’t just the best Soccer player in the world, he was an international celebrity, and dare we say an icon. Pele’s athletic skills were matched only by his good nature, as there is nobody (and we say nobody) who was a better ambassador for their sport than he was.
We congratulate Pele for adding to his long list of accolades and are thankful that the online voters of Goal.com chose the Brazilian legend. It wouldn’t be a Hall of Fame without him!
Comments powered by CComment