Pele was remembered for a life beyond the field, for transcending the sport of soccer and becoming perhaps the most well-known person on Earth.
"Before Pele, '10' was just a number," current Brazil forward Neymar wrote following the soccer great's death Thursday at the age of 82. "That line, beautiful, is incomplete. I would say that before Pele soccer was just a sport. Pele changed everything. He transformed soccer into art, entertainment. He gave voice to the poor, to the Black and above all he gave Brazil visibility. Soccer and Brazil elevated their standing thanks to the King! He is gone, but his magic will endure."
Pele scored 12 goals in 14 World Cup matches and is the only three-time world champion, winning titles in 1958, 1962 and 1970. His death was especially impactful for generations of Brazilian players who idolized him.
"Today Brazil waves goodbye to one of its most illustrious children," wrote Romario, a 1994 World Cup champion who used Pele's full name in his post. "Edson Arantes do Nascimento made the world bow to his talent and took Brazilian soccer to the altar of gods. Throughout his life, Pele inspired generations of athletes and deserves every tribute."
Ronaldo, who led Brazil to a fifth World Cup title in 2002, described Pele as "Unique. Genius. Skilled. Creative. Perfect. Unmatched."
"What a privilege to come after you, my friend," Ronaldo wrote. "Your talent is a school through which every player should go. Your legacy transcends generations. And that is the way you will continue to live."
Pele was a revered sports figure to a level probably not comparable to any athlete other than Muhammad Ali. As comfortable mingling with heads of states and celebrities as he was evading defenders, Pele made an impact in capitals across continents.
"As one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, he understood the power of sports to bring people together," former U.S. President Barack Obama wrote.
U.S. President Joe Biden tweeted: "For a sport that brings the world together like no other, Pele's rise from humble beginnings to soccer legend is a story of what is possible."
Pele's greatest impact was in Brazil, a unifying figure celebrated during the 2014 World Cup.
"I saw Pele play, live, at Pacaembu and Morumbi (stadiums)," former Brazil President and current President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wrote. "Play, no. I saw Pele give a show. Because when he got the ball he always did something special, which often ended in a goal. ... Few Brazilians took the name of our country as far as he did. As different from Portuguese as one's language was, foreigners from the four corners of the planet soon found a way to pronounce the magic word: `Pele."'
For a half-century, people who knew the name of only one soccer player knew Pele.
"He made people dream and continued to do that with generations and generations of lovers of our sport," France coach Didier Deschamps said in a statement. "Who, as a child, didn't dream of being Pele? ... Pele was the alliance of beauty and efficiency. His talent and his list of achievements will stay engraved in our minds forever."
French soccer star Kylian Mbappe tied Pele for sixth in career World Cup goals with a hat trick in this month's loss to Argentina in the final. Four years ago, Mbappe became only the second teenager -- after Pele -- to score a goal in a World Cup final.
"The king of football has left us but his legacy will never be forgotten," Mbappe wrote.
"Pele not only filled football stadiums with exhilaration but he filled hearts and homes with hope and the knowledge that adversity was surmountable," South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement Friday. "His endurance and impact on the field of play inspired the resilience with which Pele worked for peace and justice globally."
When Pele's condition worsened last month during the World Cup in Qatar, get well messages were flashed on the sides of buildings in Doha. The English Football Association lit Wembley Stadium's arch in Brazil's colours on Wednesday night. FIFA, soccer's governing body, changed its website's homepage to photos of Pele with a black background.
"Pele did things that no other player would even dream of," FIFA president Gianni Infantino wrote. "The sight of him punching the air in celebration is one of the most iconic in our sport, and is etched into our history. In fact, because televised football was still in his infancy at the time, we only saw small glimpses of what he was capable of."
When Pele played for the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League from 1975-77, he helped spark soccer's rise in the United States, leading to the nation hosting the World Cup in 1994.
"Pele was truly a remarkable figure -- on and off the field," said FIFA Council member Sunil Gulati, a former U.S. Soccer Federation president. "The world has lost a once in a lifetime sportsman who leaves an extraordinary legacy."
Members of Parliament will cast their first confidence vote of the fall sitting on Wednesday, but with it poised to fail, political posturing is already ramping up over future tests of the Liberal minority government.
A man who "systematically isolated, manipulated, deceived, abused, and exploited" an elderly North Vancouver woman has lost his ownership stake in her home.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
Mortgage rule changes allow easier entry into the housing market with lower monthly payments, but also an increased cost of repaying a mortgage.
Careful listeners of Mozart may notice an unfamiliar melody attributed to his childhood works in their streaming feeds this week.
More than a third of children around the world were nearsighted in 2023, and this proportion will rise to almost 40 per cent in 2050, according to new research.
More Canadians are installing solar panels on their homes, but some are facing challenges when it comes to getting home insurance after the panels are put in.
Pope Francis took the unusual decision Wednesday to expel 10 people – a bishop, priests and laypeople -- from a troubled Catholic movement in Peru after a Vatican investigation uncovered 'sadistic' abuses of power, authority and spirituality.
A man who "systematically isolated, manipulated, deceived, abused, and exploited" an elderly North Vancouver woman has lost his ownership stake in her home.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
A veteran Montreal police officer says racism is a 'cancer eating away at the organization' in a stinging resignation letter.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
Searching for polar bears where the Churchill River dumps into Canada's massive Hudson Bay, biologist Geoff York scans a region that's on a low fat, low ice diet because of climate change. And it's getting lower on polar bears.
Two people were hurt in an explosion Wednesday morning at a courthouse in Southern California, authorities said.
Pope Francis took the unusual decision Wednesday to expel 10 people – a bishop, priests and laypeople -- from a troubled Catholic movement in Peru after a Vatican investigation uncovered 'sadistic' abuses of power, authority and spirituality.
A Missouri man convicted of breaking into a woman’s home and repeatedly stabbing her was executed Tuesday over the objections of the victim’s family and the prosecutor, who wanted the death sentence commuted to life in prison.
U.S. President Joe Biden said Wednesday that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah threatens to become an 'all-out war' as his top diplomat and other advisers worked behind the scenes pressing for a temporary cease-fire to calm the escalating conflict that has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon in recent days.
Dozens of U.S. troops have been deployed to Cyprus amid sharply escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.
Interested in owning Alex Jones' conspiracy theory empire, Infowars? Its parent company, Free Speech Systems, is now officially up for sale following the approval of a Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday.
An academic who studies the flow of information in an era of mistruths and polarized views says it is very difficult to gauge the effect of media content on people's behaviour.
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Liberal MP Faycal El-Khoury, who was born in Lebanon, says Canada needs to push its peer countries more to stop a cycle of violence in the Middle East, or it could lead to a world war.
A 20-second session of self-compassionate touch reduced stress, increased kindness to participants and improved mental well-being, according to a recent study.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
A team at the University of Waterloo are developing a process to 3D-print bones, which could dramatically improve the quality of life for cancer and trauma patients.
More than a third of children around the world were nearsighted in 2023, and this proportion will rise to almost 40 per cent in 2050, according to new research.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
The carbon fibre hull of the experimental submersible that imploded en route to the wreckage of the Titanic had imperfections dating to the manufacturing process and behaved differently after a loud bang was heard on one of the dives the year before the tragedy, an engineer with the National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday.
Careful listeners of Mozart may notice an unfamiliar melody attributed to his childhood works in their streaming feeds this week.
Although it's a bestseller on Amazon, the late Kim Porter did not write a tell-all memoir detailing an abusive relationship with her longtime partner Sean 'Diddy' Combs, her children said in a statement Tuesday.
Lady Gaga isn't joking around about releasing new music. The Oscar-winner announced on Tuesday that she's releasing a new album titled 'Harlequin,' which she said in an Instagram post is a companion album to the upcoming film 'Joker: Folie a Deux.'
Mortgage rule changes allow easier entry into the housing market with lower monthly payments, but also an increased cost of repaying a mortgage.
Interested in owning Alex Jones' conspiracy theory empire, Infowars? Its parent company, Free Speech Systems, is now officially up for sale following the approval of a Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday.
A federal judge sentenced FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s former girlfriend to two years in prison, citing her extensive cooperation with prosecutors that led to the conviction of the former face of the cryptocurrency industry in one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history.
From cellphone 'hotels' to patchwork policies to recalibrating lesson plans, teachers and schools across Canada are learning to navigate a classroom without cellphones.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.
The Newcomers Football Club, an impromptu team made up of asylum-seekers, has helped provide Boubacar Lukaku and others with a joy that erases their stress. And it's helped connect them with a supportive community as they navigate the challenges of a new country.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
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A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.
Fire has destroyed a barn and 17,000 plants at a family-owned business in Lower Coverdale, N.B.
Before influencers on social media, Canada’s Jeanne Beker was bringing the world of high fashion down to earth and as Calgary’s Glenbow Museum gets a major make-over, it will include a new exhibition showcasing the pop culture icon.
A sea lion swam free after a rescue team disentangled it near Vancouver Island earlier this week.
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Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.
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Mounties have seized nearly two dozen guns and several kilograms of explosives following a pair of searches at what police described as a "fortified" residence above a business in Surrey, B.C.
British Columbia's New Democrats have unveiled a plan that Leader David Eby says will help middle-income families purchase a home by financing 40 per cent of the price.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
Police have arrested one suspect and are looking for two others in connection with a rash of thefts in which thieves gained access to moving tractor trailers and stole more than $2.2 million in merchandise while the vehicles were stopped at red lights.
The union representing some elementary teachers in Toronto says Premier Doug Ford’s comments about a field trip highlighting the challenges facing a northern Ontario First Nation, which ended with students chanting pro-Palestinian slogans, are taking away from the plight of the impacted Indigenous Peoples.
A suspect who died while in police custody earlier this month was unarmed when he was tackled and punched by a group of Calgary officers, the province's police watchdog said Wednesday.
Police seized more than $500,000 worth of cocaine and methamphetamine from a Calgary home during a recent search.
A new report says increasing Indigenous participation in Alberta's labour market could boost the province's GDP by between two and three percentage points, the equivalent of $8 billion to $11 billion annually.
NHL star forward Claude Giroux had his car stolen in Ottawa on Tuesday evening, his wife says.
The Ottawa Police Service is investigating reports of gunfire in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday evening.
The City of Ottawa has found more than $564,000 in back taxes are no longer able to be recovered and staff are recommending councillors approve writing it off.
The opposition tried unsuccessfully on Wednesday to find out more about the state of public funds invested in Northvolt.
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Charges have been laid in an incident that seriously injured a man at a shelter south of Edmonton last month.
A new report says increasing Indigenous participation in Alberta's labour market could boost the province's GDP by between two and three percentage points, the equivalent of $8 billion to $11 billion annually.
The Alberta Cancer Foundation and the provincial government are working to expand lung screening services to remote and rural areas.
Ottawa has finalized a $500-million bailout to help Nova Scotia Power keep rates from skyrocketing due to delivery delays of Muskrat Falls electricity.
Lobster harvesters from the Maritimes walked out of a meeting with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Tuesday after officials allegedly refused to discuss what harvesters say is illegal fishing that has been taking place out of season since August.
The co-chair of a working group looking into support for Nova Scotia's wine industry has resigned, calling the talks with the provincial government an "enormous disappointment."
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A new monument honouring the victims of a plane crash in Winnipeg in 1972 was unveiled Wednesday afternoon.
Minister of Education Jeremy Cockrill is facing a second investigation by the province's Conflict of Interest Commissioner (COIC) – this time concerning investments into helium companies that have held government contracts.
In a human trafficking trial Tuesday, a Bangladeshi woman says she was sexually assaulted nearly two years ago during her time working at a small-town Saskatchewan restaurant.
Much of Saskatchewan has been experiencing warmer than usual temperatures for this time of year, which has people out making the most of it.
The Brant County Health Unit (BCHU) says it has its first case this year of suspected human exposure to an animal with rabies after a person was believed to be bit by a bat.
Newlyweds claim the company they hired to take their wedding photos and videos took off with their precious memories – and their money.
The new tower would be built at the former longtime home of CTV Kitchener but people living on the quiet streets nearby say they need some questions answered first.
In a human trafficking trial Tuesday, a Bangladeshi woman says she was sexually assaulted nearly two years ago during her time working at a small-town Saskatchewan restaurant.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
The Resort Village of Candle Lake says the devastating Monday morning fire has completely destroyed a portion of the Candle Lake Golf Course clubhouse.
GRAPHIC WARNING: A woman accusing Jacob Hoggard of sexual assault in northern Ontario told his trial the musician raped, hit and choked her before urinating on her in a hotel room after she attended his band's concert and an after-party eight years ago.
Raids of two residences in Cochrane on Tuesday yielded $25,000 in illegal drugs, firearms and $3,500 in cash.
A 25-year-old suspect was charged with impaired driving Sept. 21 after police spotted two people without helmets on an ATV on Sand Bay Road in Goulais River.
A statement from the province said Musyj will work closely with LHSC senior leadership and staff to address concerns regarding hospital governance and operations, and management practices, including concerning financial performance, that were found as a result of a third-party review.
After several years off due to the pandemic and a cancellation, the annual United Way 3M Harvest Lunch was back in full force at Covent Garden Market Square on Wednesday afternoon.
Fire crews from Listowel, Atwood, and Monkton battled the blaze on Line 81, which started around 5 p.m. Tuesday.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
This week marks the opening of a new road in Barrie's south end, which is anticipated to help ease traffic congestion.
The province is changing how 911 calls are dispatched across Simcoe County with a faster, more effective system prioritizing life-threatening emergencies, such as cardiac arrest, unconsciousness or choking.
A statement from the province said Musyj will work closely with LHSC senior leadership and staff to address concerns regarding hospital governance and operations, and management practices, including concerning financial performance, that were found as a result of a third-party review.
Windsor-based benefits company, GreenShield Canada, has been recognized as a leading non-profit, part of Fortune’s Change the World List 2024.
A major yogurt maker is recalling one of its brands in Canada over concerns that it may cause illness in immunocompromised people.
A series of atmospheric rivers has been moving across British Columbia's north and central coasts and spreading into the Interior.
British Columbia's New Democrats have unveiled a plan that Leader David Eby says will help middle-income families purchase a home by financing 40 per cent of the price.
Mounties say two men and two women were charged with more than two dozen drug and weapons offences this summer following a year-long investigation into a Metro Vancouver drug-trafficking ring.
A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.
The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.
Dozens of police officers and support workers have come to Lethbridge for the Social Disorder and Urban Crime Conference.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
To make higher education an easier step to take for Indigenous students, the University of Lethbridge is dropping some fees for those applicants.
Unless there is more funding from the province, the Sault Area Hospital is expected to finish the year with a budget deficit of more than $20 million.
A northern Ontario woman in her first term as mayor of Timmins has given birth to her second child.
GRAPHIC WARNING: A woman accusing Jacob Hoggard of sexual assault in northern Ontario told his trial the musician raped, hit and choked her before urinating on her in a hotel room after she attended his band's concert and an after-party eight years ago.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
Newfoundland and Labrador sponsored a minor football team in England, now they’re about to play one of the biggest clubs in European soccer.
Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
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