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LAST UPDATE | 2 Jan 2023
MOURNERS BEGAN PAYING their respects to Pele in a solemn procession past his coffin at the Vila Belmiro Stadium in his home town of Santos earlier today.
The Brazilian football great died on Thursday after a battle with cancer. He was 82.
Pele’s coffin was placed on the field where he scored scored some of the best goals of his career. Mourners walked past his casket in the 16,000-seat stadium outside Sao Paulo.
Vila Belmiro was decorated with Brazilian flags and No 10 shirts that became popular after Pele started wearing them for Santos and Brazil.
The stands filled up with bouquets of flowers placed by mourners and sent by clubs and star players — Neymar and Ronaldo among them — from around the world as loudspeakers played a song named Eu Sou Pele (I Am Pele) that was recorded by the Brazilian himself.
His funeral was scheduled start at 10am local time (1pm Irish time), and the burial will take place in a vertical cemetery 600 metres away tomorrow.
Fans started arriving at the stadium in the early hours of this morning to pay their last respects to Edson Arantes do Nascimento, globally known as Pele.
Among them was Fifa President Gianni Infantino, who told journalists that every country should name a stadium after the three-time World Cup winner.
“I am here with a lot of emotion, sadness, but also with a smile because he gave us so many smiles,” Infantino said. “As Fifa, we will pay a tribute to the ‘King’ and we ask the whole world to observe a minute of silence.”
Another mourner was Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes.
“It is a very sad moment, but we are now seeing the real meaning of this legendary player to our country,” Mendes told journalists. “My office has shirts signed by Pele, a picture of him as a goalkeeper, also signed by him, DVDs, photos, a big collection of him.”
Mendes also said Pele was a humble man despite his global fame, and that he deserves every tribute.
After Pele’s funeral, his casket will be ushered through the streets of Santos before his burial. Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and other dignitaries are expected to attend.
Pele had undergone treatment for colon cancer since 2021. The medical centre where he had been treated said he died of multiple organ failure as a result of the cancer.
Mendes also said Pele was a humble man despite his global fame, and that he deserves every tribute.
Inside the Vila Belmiro, a large tent has been set up in which to place Pele’s coffin.
After Pele’s funeral, his casket will be ushered through the streets of Santos before his burial. Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will attend the wake for Pele on Tuesday, his office said.
Lula, who took office on Sunday for a third term, “will pay his respects and tribute to Edson Arantes do Nascimento, ‘Pele,’ and his condolences to his family on Tuesday at 9:00 am (1200 GMT),” his office confirmed in a statement.
Pele had undergone treatment for colon cancer since 2021. The medical centre where he had been treated said he died of multiple organ failure as a result of the cancer.
Additional reporting from – © AFP 2023
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“Always proud of what we accomplished for the American people”… really!?
@merely ed: well if you call turning the economy around,creating jobs ,and putting money in working class pockets “doing something” then yes Really he did…hard concept to grasp here I know..
@Gerry Campbell: Turning the economy around how exactly? Building on the economy being turned around is more accurate. But instead of reducing the debt, deficit and trade deficit (as ‘promised’)…..guess what happened? Also, exactly how much did ‘the working class’ gain in the 8th largest tax cuts in US history?
@Gerry Campbell: looks like you fell for the Fox and trump narrative. The US economy was on the rise under Obama, along with the global economy. He gave tax rises to his billionaire buddy’s and totally lost the economy over ignoring covid and then mismanagement of the country. Maybe you also believed his 12641 lies and false facts or his 25000 tweets and thought he did well during his 234 golf days or that the perpetual sacking of the very best best people was enough. He was the worst president the US ever had, is a complete narcissist and not a nice person. Apart from this, he was grand.
@Gerry Campbell: Trump spent money that wasn’t there, by getting the Fed to print more money, bringing interest rates to almost zero in the process, lumbering future generations with massive debt. The previous administration did not create anything positive. Some people have weird ideas about what ‘doing good for a country’ really looks like
@Gerry Campbell: and the millions in tax cuts he gave the rich sure did wonders alright. And sure he didn’t go to war with any country unlike past presidents, but almost brought his own country to the brink of civil unrest. And then there was the border wall…those pesky Mexicans were going to pay for, how did that work out lads
@Gerry Campbell: Hard to grasp? You really have to have your brain in neutral not to see what a disaster the Trump administration was. The USA has never been more polarised. Looking back now at the chilling speech that Trump gave on the 6th Jan was chilling and reminiscent of the speeches Hitler gave in the ‘30s. Grasp that.
@Gerry Campbell: Ger drank the GOP kool-aid
@Gerry Campbell: Putting money in the pockets of working class Americans is a complete myth and if you look at the facts and not the smoke and mirrors that Trump would have you believe you’ll see he did nothing for the working class of America
@Gerry Campbell: I guess you’re part of the deluded Republicans too… oh dear.
@Gerry Campbell: your just another deluded f00l!
He’s just another facilitator of a dangerous nut job.
What is driving those people??
@Johannes Baader: 70-odd million potential votes
“Thanks to the swift action of the Capitol Police”- weren’t they the ones who opened the barriers, stood aside and let them in? Pretty sure there were numerous videos floating around at the time showing it.
@Football in the Groin: yeah, I thought the story there was they were told to fall back to defend the building rather than the barricaded perimeter die to not getting the extra numbers they had requested
Just trying to separate himself from Trump and give that 2024 campaign a hope in hell
I cannot forget an interview I saw on TV prior to the election. Trump was speaking and Pence was watching him with what looked like total adoration. Pence strikes me as a pawn who wore a gag throughout the Trump presidency placed there by his handlers. He would be a puppet to those Republican handlers were he ever elected.
This is because Biden’s eyes are looking at the facts, but Trump’s eyes actually never stop rotating, the left in a counter-clockwise motion, the right clockwise.
@Mac Muinteoir: holy moley, my eyes read pence but my brain read Biden. Trump still a swivel-eyed loon tho.
Pence is like the DUP of American politics, he lives in the 1600′s with his views and what people don’t realise, he’s more dangerous than even trump would be, cos aul donny just wanted the spotlight and did his dance on immigration and border walls, but pence would be like hold my beer if he ever got into power with what he would try bring in terms of policy
The smile Pence gave, before saying that he and Trump would never see eye to eye on certain things was meant to say to Trump supporters “Yes, he really is a great guy, isn’t he.”
Surely they’ll send each other Christmas cards at least. Is there any light at the tunnel for Bert and Ernie?
How unreasonable of him not seeing eye to eye with a loon who sent a mob to Lynch him.
Trump is a great guy.
If Pence manages to become President in 2024 the Trump supporters will kill him.
@David O Brien: trump supporters won’t vote for him. They will be too busy voting for trumps new party. And That’ll split the Republican vote
@David O Brien: True but if they can’t fix the massive Trump Q-Anon v Conservative Republican divide in the party – they won’t have to worry about which one of them won’t be winning the Presidency again any time soon
Very restrained from Pence considering trump’s blatant lies to his mob about pence’s non existent powers to stop the election decision and his alleged failure to carry them out resulted in the same mob wanting to hang Pence. Who would even talk to someone else who did that to them in normal life?
Pence allowed the BOZO LIER TRUMP TO BE THE MAN WHO MURDERED SO MENY PEOPLE
Can I ask why Pence does not get any credit for refusing to overturn the election results? If he had gone against Trump before that he would surely have been replaced. I feel his refusal to go with Trump on that key issue went a long way to moving America from the brink of civil war
@Eamon Kelly: He literally couldn’t. His role was purely ceremonial and was to announce the results as returned by the electors. The idea that he could reject it was another falsehood.
@Eamon Kelly: he had no power to do so. When trump has no other way out of a situation he will throw anyone under the bus, even his own family.
@Steve O’Farrell: thanks
@Fred spins kdb: thanks
Pence is a spent penny
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