{"id":2755,"date":"2023-01-03T12:33:41","date_gmt":"2023-01-03T12:33:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=2755"},"modified":"2023-01-03T12:33:41","modified_gmt":"2023-01-03T12:33:41","slug":"brazil-prepares-to-bury-pele-in-the-city-he-turned-into-a-football-mecca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/brusselsindependent\/brazil-prepares-to-bury-pele-in-the-city-he-turned-into-a-football-mecca\/2023\/01\/03\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Brazil prepares to bury Pele in the city he turned into a football mecca"},"content":{"rendered":"

SANTOS,<\/span> Brazil<\/span> (AP)<\/span> January,3–<\/span> It’s<\/span> been<\/span> 45<\/span> years<\/span> since<\/span> Pele<\/span> played<\/span> his<\/span> last<\/span> match<\/span> and<\/span> it’s<\/span> hard<\/span> to<\/span> imagine<\/span> modern<\/span> football<\/span> or<\/span> Brazil<\/span> without<\/span> him.<\/span><\/p>\n

17-year-old<\/span> Geovana<\/span> Salmento<\/span> said<\/span> he<\/span> waited<\/span> in<\/span> line<\/span> for<\/span> three<\/span> hours<\/span> to<\/span> see<\/span> his<\/span> body<\/span> resting<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> stadium<\/span> where<\/span> he<\/span> played<\/span> most<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> career.<\/span> She<\/span> came<\/span> with<\/span> her<\/span> father,<\/span> who<\/span> wore<\/span> a<\/span> Brazilian<\/span> shirt<\/span> with<\/span> Pele’s<\/span> name<\/span> on<\/span> it.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Pele<\/span> will<\/span> be<\/span> buried<\/span> on<\/span> Tuesday<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> city<\/span> where<\/span> he<\/span> grew<\/span> up,<\/span> rose<\/span> to<\/span> fame<\/span> and<\/span> helped<\/span> make<\/span> him<\/span> a<\/span> global<\/span> football<\/span> capital,<\/span> after<\/span> a<\/span> Catholic<\/span> mass<\/span> was<\/span> held<\/span> at<\/span> Vila’s<\/span> Belmiro<\/span> stadium.<\/span> His<\/span> coffin<\/span> was<\/span> carried<\/span> through<\/span> the<\/span> streets<\/span> of<\/span> Santos<\/span> to<\/span> a<\/span> nearby<\/span> cemetery.<\/span> Brazil’s<\/span> newly<\/span> elected<\/span> president,<\/span> Luis<\/span> Inacio<\/span> Lula<\/span> da<\/span> Silva,<\/span> is<\/span> set<\/span> to<\/span> take<\/span> office<\/span> for<\/span> a<\/span> third<\/span> term<\/span> after<\/span> Sunday’s<\/span> comeback<\/span> win<\/span> and<\/span> is<\/span> expected<\/span> to<\/span> arrive<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> Vila<\/span> Vermiro<\/span> just<\/span> before<\/span> his<\/span> coffin<\/span> is<\/span> removed<\/span> from<\/span> the<\/span> stadium.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> soccer<\/span> star<\/span> died<\/span> Thursday<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> age<\/span> of<\/span> 82<\/span> after<\/span> a<\/span> battle<\/span> with<\/span> cancer,<\/span> the<\/span> only<\/span> player<\/span> to<\/span> win<\/span> three<\/span> world<\/span> championships.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Thousands<\/span> of<\/span> mourners,<\/span> including<\/span> high<\/span> school<\/span> students<\/span> and<\/span> Supreme<\/span> Court<\/span> judges,<\/span> passed<\/span> Pele’s<\/span> body<\/span> Monday<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> centuries-old<\/span> field<\/span> where<\/span> he<\/span> turned<\/span> his<\/span> hometown<\/span> team<\/span> into<\/span> Brazil’s<\/span> premier<\/span> team.<\/span> Pele’s<\/span> coffin,<\/span> covered<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> flags<\/span> of<\/span> Brazil<\/span> and<\/span> his<\/span> FC<\/span> Santos,<\/span> was<\/span> placed<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> midfield<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> Vermiro.<\/span> The<\/span> legendary<\/span> 16,000-seat<\/span> stadium<\/span> was<\/span> surrounded<\/span> by<\/span> wailing<\/span> fans<\/span> and<\/span> covered<\/span> in<\/span> Pel\u00e9<\/span> decorations.<\/span> Fans<\/span> leaving<\/span> the<\/span> stadium<\/span> said<\/span> they<\/span> waited<\/span> in<\/span> line<\/span> for<\/span> three<\/span> hours<\/span> and<\/span> stood<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> heat.<\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span>His<\/span> engineer,<\/span> Caio<\/span> Zalke,<\/span> 35,<\/span> stood<\/span> in<\/span> line<\/span> wearing<\/span> a<\/span> Brazilian<\/span> jersey.<\/span> “Pele<\/span> is<\/span> the<\/span> most<\/span> important<\/span> Brazilian<\/span> of<\/span> all<\/span> time.<\/span> He<\/span> made<\/span> football<\/span> important<\/span> for<\/span> Brazil,<\/span> he<\/span> made<\/span> Brazil<\/span> important<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> world,”<\/span> he<\/span> said.<\/span> In<\/span> the<\/span> 1960s<\/span> and<\/span> 70s,<\/span> Pele<\/span> was<\/span> probably<\/span> the<\/span> most<\/span> famous<\/span> athlete<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> world.<\/span> He<\/span> met<\/span> presidents<\/span> and<\/span> queens<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> civil<\/span> war<\/span> in<\/span> Nigeria<\/span> was<\/span> interrupted<\/span> to<\/span> see<\/span> him<\/span> play.<\/span> Many<\/span> Brazilians<\/span> believe<\/span> he<\/span> put<\/span> his<\/span> country<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> world<\/span> stage<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> first<\/span> time.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>A<\/span> row<\/span> of<\/span> shirts<\/span> with<\/span> Pele’s<\/span> number<\/span> 10<\/span> jersey<\/span> was<\/span> placed<\/span> behind<\/span> his<\/span> one<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> gate,<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> city’s<\/span> summer<\/span> breeze<\/span> was<\/span> blowing.<\/span> Part<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> stand<\/span> was<\/span> laid<\/span> by<\/span> mourners<\/span> and<\/span> filled<\/span> with<\/span> bouquets<\/span> sent<\/span> from<\/span> all<\/span> over<\/span> the<\/span> world<\/span> by<\/span> clubs<\/span> and<\/span> stars,<\/span> including<\/span> Neymar<\/span> and<\/span> Ronaldo,<\/span> while<\/span> speakers<\/span> chanted<\/span> “Eu<\/span> sou<\/span> Pel\u00e9”<\/span> (“I<\/span> am<\/span> Pel\u00e9”).<\/span> ),<\/span> the<\/span> Brazilian<\/span> recorded<\/span> himself.<\/span> Most<\/span> of<\/span> them<\/span> were<\/span> locals,<\/span> although<\/span> some<\/span> came<\/span> from<\/span> far<\/span> away.<\/span> Many<\/span> mourners<\/span> were<\/span> too<\/span> young<\/span> to<\/span> see<\/span> Pele<\/span> play.<\/span> The<\/span> mood<\/span> picked<\/span> up<\/span> as<\/span> people<\/span> in<\/span> Santos<\/span> FC<\/span> and<\/span> Brazil<\/span> shirts<\/span> flooded<\/span> the<\/span> stadium<\/span> into<\/span> local<\/span> bars.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Among<\/span> those<\/span> present<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> stadium<\/span> was<\/span> Pele’s<\/span> best<\/span> friend<\/span> Manoel<\/span> Maria,<\/span> a<\/span> former<\/span> Santos<\/span> player.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“Even<\/span> if<\/span> I<\/span> had<\/span> all<\/span> the<\/span> wealth<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> world,<\/span> I<\/span> could<\/span> never<\/span> give<\/span> back<\/span> what<\/span> this<\/span> man<\/span> did<\/span> for<\/span> me<\/span> and<\/span> my<\/span> family.<\/span> He<\/span> was<\/span> a<\/span> player<\/span> and<\/span> a<\/span> great<\/span> person<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> same<\/span> time.<\/span> The<\/span> best<\/span> ever.<\/span> His<\/span> legacy<\/span> lives<\/span> on<\/span> for<\/span> all<\/span> of<\/span> us.<\/span> And<\/span> you<\/span> can<\/span> see<\/span> it<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> long<\/span> lines<\/span> of<\/span> people<\/span> of<\/span> all<\/span> ages<\/span> here.<\/span> “<\/span>
\n<\/span>FIFA<\/span> president<\/span> Gianni<\/span> Infantino<\/span> told<\/span> journalists<\/span> that<\/span> all<\/span> countries<\/span> should<\/span> name<\/span> their<\/span> stadiums<\/span> after<\/span> Pele.<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SANTOS, Brazil (AP) January,3– It’s been 45 years since Pele played his last match and it’s hard to imagine modern football or Brazil without him. 17-year-old Geovana Salmento said he waited in line for three hours to see his body resting in the stadium where he played most of his career. She came with her […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2756,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[1,372],"tags":[651,652,475,649,650],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/pele.jpg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2755"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2755"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2755\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2757,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2755\/revisions\/2757"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2756"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2755"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2755"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2755"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}