Former Brazilian professional footballer Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known by his stage as Pelé, was a forward who played in the league from 1940 to 1986.
He was among the most prosperous and well-known athletes of the 20th century, and he is regarded as one of the all-time great players and FIFA’s “the greatest.”
He was named the International Olympic Committee’s Athlete of the Century in 1999, and Time named him one of the 100 most influential individuals of the 20th century. Pelé was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the Century award in 2000 and was chosen by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) as the World Player of the Century.
Pelé parents: Dondinho, Celeste Arantes
Edson Arantes do Nascimento, the son of Fluminense footballer Dondinho (born Joo Ramos do Nascimento), and Celeste Arantes, was born on October 23, 1940, in Três Coraçes, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The older of two siblings, he was. He was given the American inventor Thomas Edison as his name.
Despite his parents’ decision to drop the I and change his name to “Edson,” numerous records still list his name as “Edison” instead of “Edson” due to an error on the birth certificate. His family gave him the moniker “Dico” at first.
