Some of you might not even like football (soccer), but it’s pretty much impossible that you have never heard of this sport’s greatest player ever: Edson Arantes do Nascimento or most famously known as the legendary Pelé!
Pelé is known for scoring over 1,283 goals throughout his career and winning 3 FIFA world cups (3 out of the 4 he participated in). He is indeed known as the greatest football player ever in history (yes, even better than Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo).
Many modern great teams such as Real Madrid, Juventus and Manchester United wanted Pelé to sign with them. However, the government of Brazil declared Pelé an “official national treasure” to prevent him from being transferred out of the country!
His skills as a football player were able to make him a star around the world. He toured with his team (Santos do Brazil) internationally so they could take advantage of his popularity. Even in 1967, the two factions involved in the Nigerian Civil War agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire so they could watch Pelé play an exhibition game in Lagos, which happens to be the most populous city in Nigeria!