Pele: World pays tribute, as Brazil begins days of mourning

Brazilians awoke on Friday to three days of official mourning following the death of soccer legend Pele as tributes continued to pour in from across the globe.

The standard-bearer of "the beautiful game" and widely regarded as the greatest player to ever grace the sport had been treated for colon cancer since 2021. The three-time World Cup winner passed away on Thursday aged 82 due to multiple organ failure as a result of the cancer.

'The 1970 World Cup stamped his legacy'

DW spoke with David Tryhorn, director of the Netflix documentary "Pele" who described him as "an absolute gentleman."

When he met the legend 15 years ago, Tryhorn said: "He would come into the room and in that period he was already a little bit physically incapacitated, but he would light up a room. He had such a warm personality and a warm way about him. "

One of the most compelling stories uncovered in the documentary, Tryhorn said, was how Pele almost didn't compete in the 1970 World Cup, which he ended up helping Brazil win.

"That was the tournament that stamped his legacy and made Brazil what it is today, the country of football, perhaps more so than even 1958 when he was a teenager," Tryhorn said. "But I think what we didn't realize, there was this genuine chance he wouldn't play in 1970. He had retired from the national team. He got fed up with playing for Brazil and they had to coax him back."

"He transcended the sport. And I think we have to remember the era he came up through. This was the birth of football as big business. And, in many ways, Pele was the first modern superstar."

"I think his legacy, more than anything, is what he did for his country before 1958. Brazil wasn't the wasn't the country of football. After 1970, it became the country of football. And that's largely down to one man — Pele."

Minute's applause in Australia, silence in Italy

All top level soccer matches in Australia will hold a minute's applause before kick-off as a tribute to the soccer legend, the Australian Professional Leagues (APL) said on Friday, while Italy's Football Federation has called for a minute's silence.

Brazilian flags at landmarks across the globe are being held at half mast while outgoing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has declared three days of national mourning.

Bolsonaro said Pele had made football an "art and joy", while his soon-to-be successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, tweeted: "There had never been a number 10 like him."

In Germany, the country's football federation (DFB) described Pele as "an icon for generations" while his passing is something met  "with great sadness."

"Football has lost one of its greatest," DFB president Bernd Neuendorf said in a statement. "Pelé's importance extended far beyond the pitch. He was an icon for generations."

German national team coach Hansi Flick said in the statement: "There has never been a better player than Pele. His game was close to perfection, he was complete, had no weaknesses. Pele could do everything."

Beckenbauer: 'The greatest and a unique friend'

But perhaps the most poignant tribute came from Pele's friend of over half a century, German soccer great Franz Beckenbauer, who said football had lost the "greatest in its history and a unique friend."

"Pele had three hearts," the former German national team captain and manager continued, "for football, for his family, for all people."

"In 1977, I went to the United States because I really wanted to play in a team with Pele at the New York Cosmos. That time by his side was one of the greatest moments of my career. We became US champions together straight away, and Pele called me his brother from that moment. It was an unimaginable honor for me."

jsi/jcg (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)