NAQT You Gotta Know: Sports — Flashcards

(Born 1940, Brazil, forward) Also known as 'the Black Pearl,' Pelé led the Brazilian national team to three World Cup victories in 1958, 1962, and 1970 (though he was injured for most of '62 finals) and to permanent possession of the Jules Rimet Trophy. In his professional and international career, he played in 1,363 matches and scored 1,282 goals. He made his professional debut with Brazil's Santos in 1956 and played with them until 1974. In 1975, he came out of retirement to promote the game in the United States by starring for the NASL's New York Cosmos, earning him 1976 NASL MVP honors; his retirement game in 1977 at Giants Stadium against his old club Santos drew over 75,000 people, the largest crowd to see a soccer match in the U.S. before the 1984 Olympics. He later became Brazil's Minister of Sport and, in 1999, the National Olympic Committees named Pelé the IOC's Athlete of the Century, despite having never partaken in an Olympic Games.