Pelé is dead but the King remains "eternal" as headlined by the Brazilian daily O Globo with, on one of the many editions, a photo where, in Brazil's gold jersey, he raises his right arm, carried by his teammate Jairzinho seen from behind with his number 7… This same pixelated photo is on the front page of Le Parisien with the simple caption “King Pelé”, “planetary emotion”.
In the aftermath of the disappearance of the football icon, who died at the age of 82, the entire world press, from India to Canada via Europe and Africa, pays a vibrant and moving tribute this Friday to the one who revolutionized the game, the only player to have won three world cups (between 1958 and 1970).
Headlines about the Brazilian are as numerous as his number of goals.
The sports press of course, but not only.
Em homenagem a Pelé, O GLOBO terá edição inédita com quatro capas que ilustram grandes momentos do Rei https://t.co/2mLORSKS13
—Jornal O Globo (@JornalOGlobo) December 30, 2022
The Brazilian economic newspaper Jornal do Comercio mentions "the icon of world football".
The Estado de Minas makes its front page with a drawing of the "eternal" Pelé.
“Pelé is dead, football loses its king”, headlines O Estado de Sao Paulo, a man who according to Folha de Sao Paulo “showed the power of sport and pushed the limits of fame”.
On the website of this Paulista newspaper, Juca Kfouri praises the "best player in history" and quotes the writer Carlos Drummond de Andrade (1902-1987): "It is not difficult to score a thousand goals like Pelé: what is difficult is to score a goal like Pelé”.
O Dia title “para semper Rei Pele”, forever King Pelé, with the photo of young Pelé.
Extra, the Rio de Janeiro daily, publishes a photo of number 10 from the back with a crown and the specter of a monarch.
Esta é aa capa do #JornalExtra em homenagem ao rei Pelé.
Para ler as notícias, acompanhe nossas redes sociais, ou acesse: https://t.co/pISGLvjSaB pic.twitter.com/lZh1Aj239L
— Journal Extra (@journalextra) December 30, 2022
In Argentina, the other country of football in South America, that of Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi, eternal competitors for the unofficial and impossible to award title of best player of all time, Clarin sees in Pelé "the first great football star “, a “great among the greats” according to Luis Vinker.
"The ball is crying: Pelé is dead", title Olé.
And the Argentine sports daily is a good player: "Beyond the rivalry that exists between Argentina and Brazil, no one can doubt that Pelé was one of the greatest footballers in history, for many the best. beyond Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.
What is certain is that he marked an era from his teenage debut, both with Santos and the Brazil national team.
In Ecuador, El Universo de Guayaquil says “farewell to Pelé, the supernatural footballer”.
"Pelé, the 'black pearl' who enchanted the world, is no more," headlines The Times of India.
"Absolute legend", abounds Today Morocco.
Breaking News: Pelé is dead at 82. One of the greatest soccer players of all time, he was a transformative figure in 20th-century sports.
https://t.co/OzG57AtQ4Q pic.twitter.com/qrmxjON2No
— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 29, 2022
In the United States, a country that is nevertheless sealed off from the madness of football, the New York Times evokes the disappearance of the "global face of soccer", which "helped to popularize this sport in the United States", during its visit to Cosmos New York (1975-1977).
"Brazil and the world in mourning: there was only one Pelé", recognizes the Washington Post, on the site of which the sports journalist Liz Clarke writes: "We nicknamed him the king of football, but it is the other nickname of Pelé - the "Pérola Negra", or Black Pearl - which best evokes the rare intelligence that he contained in his small frame".
Even the Wall Street Journal pays tribute to the Brazilian.
Take an early look at the front page of The Wall Street Journal https://t.co/SxVqzBubnD pic.twitter.com/oRX1JvjXug
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) December 30, 2022
In England, where football was invented, all the front pages are devoted to the disappearance of the "GOT", the best player of all time.
"I thought Messi was the best of all time, but now I realize it's Pelé," said John Carlin of Britain's The Times.
Richard Williams, of the Guardian, retains "the joy" that emanated from Pelé: "The world's first football superstar made everyone smile and his sleight of hand was never meant to belittle his opponents".
⚽ Brazil great Pele has died at the age of 82, his family have announced on social media.#pelehttps://t.co/TE9NkXBKCS pic.twitter.com/owgIFt32PT
— The Press & Journal (@pressjournal) December 29, 2022
So the biggest?
“Pelé was better than Messi, Maradona and Ronaldo together,” says Alfred Draxler, sports editor of German tabloid Bild.
Die Zeit, still in Germany, recalls that Pelé "started barefoot in the streets of Bauru and became the footballer of the century".
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In Spain, where El País celebrates “Pelé, world football in four letters”.
La Vanguardia evokes "the last great legend of world football", and Marca highlights on its site the portrait of the young Pelé with a crown on his head, the years 1940 and 2022, and a black border, the color of mourning.
The sports daily also links the video "which shows that all the great actions of Cruyff, Zidane, Messi... Pelé had already invented them".
As stands out from the rest of the tributes from other newspapers by featuring a photo of the stadium idol's feet on the front page.
The front page of As#Pelé pic.twitter.com/4RpWTALOjr
— Thierry Dugeon (@ThierryDugeon) December 30, 2022
“The world of football is losing its “Rei”, laments La Stampa, in Italy.
On the website of the Turin daily, Matteo Giusti begins his article with a quote attributed to the Brazilian writer Jorge Amado: "If football had not been called that, it should have been called Pelé".
Buongiorno!
Ecco la prima pagina di oggi, 30/12/2022.
Gli aggiornamenti su https://t.co/x3RjqbDFRw https://t.co/NYuirq5peG pic.twitter.com/UCIVbVWJMU
— La Stampa (@LaStampa) December 30, 2022
France is no exception to this wave of tribute.
All the national or regional dailies have their front pages on the King.
This morning the #French press made its front page on the death of #Pele #football pic.twitter.com/LbQDdt6Xy7
— Jérémy Chatet (@jeremychatet) December 30, 2022
Liberation, always watched for its front page during the deaths of personalities, offers a surprising photo: we see Pelé on a field, in shorts and shirtless, but a long coat placed on the shoulders, and looking back (photo taken in Liverpool in 1966 after a Brazil-Portugal).
The title "Seleciao" is a play on words between "Seleçao" and ciao.