Pelé
Pelé, one of the greatest soccer players of all time, was born Edson Arantes do Nascimento into a Brazilian family in 1940. He joined his first soccer team, Santos Football Club, in 1956 and led them to their first world club championship in 1962. He also played with the Brazilian national team whom he led to World Cup victories in 1958, 1962, and 1970. By 1970 he had scored his 100th goal and made history as the most prolific goal-scorer in history. When he retired for the first time in 1974, Pelé had scored 1,200 goals in 1,253 games. In 1975 he came out of retirement and joined the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League, leading them to a league championship in 1977. After his subsequent retirement, Pelé became an international ambassador for soccer and worked to promote peace and understanding through friendly athletic competition.
