Topics: Pele
Pelé could soon be immortalised across every country in the world if the President of FIFA gets his way.
Gianni Infantino says he will soon be asking all the nations on our planet to name a stadium after the Brazilian footballing legend.
He sadly died at the age of 82 just before the end of 2022 after a short stint in hospital for treatment for health issues.
Pelé won the World Cup three times and scored more than 1,000 goals during his career and Infantino believes everyone needs a constant reminder of that legacy wherever they go.
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According to The Guardian, the FIFA boss told reporters: “We’re going to ask every country in the world to name one of their football stadiums with the name of Pelé.”
He said doing this will ensure 'children know Pele's importance' on football and on the world.
It will be interesting to see whether that will happen.
In Rio de Janeiro, plans to put Pelé's name on the Maracanã stadium were abandoned two years ago.
The state governor vetoed the idea and it's now named Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho.
Brazil has kicked off its 24-hour wake for Pelé, which will allow the public to come and pay their respects to the legend before he's buried.
The wake is being held at Urbano Caldeira Stadium, which is the home of his former football club, Santos.
Once the wake is completed, a funeral procession will go through the streets until it reaches the Memorial Necrópole Ecumênica cemetery.
A private funeral will be held for family members before Pelé is finally buried.
According to the Daily Mirror, his final resting place is also in sight of the Estádio Urbano Caldeira, the home of Santos FC, where Pele played out most of his club career.
Fans believe Pele carefully chose the place of his burial so he will always be able to 'see' the pitch where he played so many games.
He had been diagnosed with colon cancer in September 2021, and was admitted to hospital a month before his death, with his family confirming they expected him to be spending the festive season receiving care.
