Pele Quotes

Most important is be a good man. ~ Pele

Pele called me the greatest footballer in the world. That is the ultimate salute to my life. ~ George Best

The ambition should always be to play an elegant game. ~ Pele

Football is like a religion to me. I worship the ball, and I treat it like a god. Too many players think of a football as something to kick. They should be taught to caress it and to treat it like a precious gem. ~ Pele

Another reason why I am always close to the people, because the communication is very important. When I stopped to play soccer I continued to ... I continued to work with UNICEF. I did a lot of work with UNESCO. We did a lot of charity programme and games. ~ Pele

Messi is the best player ever. And this is said by someone who has seen Maradona and Pele play. ~ Adriano Galliani

Every kid around the world who plays soccer wants to be Pele. I have a great responsibility to show them not just how to be like a soccer player, but how to be like a man. ~ Pele

Lionel Messi is a wonderful player. Very skillful. Highly intelligent. He is not good in the air. ~ Pele

Here's why I will be a good person. Because I listen. I cannot speak, so I listen very well. I never interrupt, I never deflect the course of the conversation with a comment of my own. People, if you pay attention to them, change the direction of one another's conversations constantly. It's like having a passenger in your car who suddenly grabs the steering wheel and turns you down a side street. For instance, if we met a party and I wanted to tell you a story about the time I needed to get a soccer ball in my neighbor's yard but his dog chased me and I had to jump into a swimming pool to escape, and I began telling the story , you, upon hearing the words 'soccer' and 'neighbor' in the same sentence, might interrupt and mention that your childhood neighbor was Pele, the famous soccer player, and I might be courteous and say, Didn't he play for the Cosmos of New York? Did you grow up in New York? And you might reply that no, you grew up in Brazil on the streets of Tres Coracoes with Pele and I might say, I thought you were from Tennessee, and you might say, not originally, and then go on to outline your genealogy at length. So my initial conversational gambit - that I had a funny story about being chased by my neighbor's dog - would be totally lost, and only because you had to tell me all about Pele. Learn to listen! I beg of you. Pretend you are a dog like me and listen to other people rather than steal their stories. ~ Garth Stein

Enthusiasm is everything. It must ... ~ Pele

The bicycle kick is not easy to do. ~ Pele

It's not that difficult to play well and win titles in a team like Barcelona, but it's in the national side where you see a player's true class. That was the case with figures like Pele, Diego Maradona and Zinedine Zidane. With Spain, Iniesta has shown that he is among the best players of all time and that's why I rate him higher than Messi or Ronaldo. Even though the latter two have incredible scoring records for their clubs, they still haven't won anything with Argentina or Portugal respectively. ~ Boris Becker

Messi is undoubtedly a gifted footballer, like Maradona and Pele, and he's playing for the best club side in the world at the moment. He's successful and he's winning trophies, so it's only logical that he'll be voted the best player in the world. ~ Oliver Kahn

The World Cup is a very complicated tournament - six games, seven if you make it to the final - and maybe if you lose one game you're out, even if you're the best. ~ Pele

If I pass away one day, I am happy because I tried to do my best. My sport allowed me to do so much because it's the biggest sport in the world. ~ Pele

His left foot is fantastic. It's like Mozart. God gave Freddy the gift to play soccer. If he is prepared mentally and physically, nobody will stop him.
(on Freddy Adu) ~ Pele

Pele was a complete player. I didn't see him live obviously, because I wasn't born ~ David Beckham

No matter how old you are now. You are never too young or too old for success or going after what you want. Here's a short list of people who accomplished great things at different ages
1) Helen Keller, at the age of 19 months, became deaf and blind. But that didn't stop her. She was the first deaf and blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.
2) Mozart was already competent on keyboard and violin; he composed from the age of 5.
3) Shirley Temple was 6 when she became a movie star on "Bright Eyes."
4) Anne Frank was 12 when she wrote the diary of Anne Frank.
5) Magnus Carlsen became a chess Grandmaster at the age of 13.
6) Nadia Comăneci was a gymnast from Romania that scored seven perfect 10.0 and won three gold medals at the Olympics at age 14.
7) Tenzin Gyatso was formally recognized as the 14th Dalai Lama in November 1950, at the age of 15.
8) Pele, a soccer superstar, was 17 years old when he won the world cup in 1958 with Brazil.
9) Elvis was a superstar by age 19.
10) John Lennon was 20 years and Paul Mcartney was 18 when the Beatles had their first concert in 1961.
11) Jesse Owens was 22 when he won 4 gold medals in Berlin 1936.
12) Beethoven was a piano virtuoso by age 23
13) Issac Newton wrote Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica at age 24
14) Roger Bannister was 25 when he broke the 4 minute mile record
15) Albert Einstein was 26 when he wrote the theory of relativity
16) ~ Pablo

Pele played in an era which had so many great players and in that atmosphere he stood out above the others. He was the complete player in every aspect as well as being a kind human being. Cristiano Ronaldo is young yet, and has many years ahead of himself. But as of now, I do not see anyone who can compare with Pele. ~ Eusebio

Wherever you go, there are three icons that everyone knows: Jesus Christ, Pele and Coca-Cola. ~ Pele

George Best was the greatest player in the world. ~ Pele

Football is the best, is the biggest sport in the world. ~ Pele

I wasn't like other boys. At any rate, I wasn't like my three elder brothers: they excelled at football and they were like other boys, going up to bed each night hugging annuals filled with stories about the glories of Pele and Danny McGrain. ~ Andrew O'Hagan

Brazil is crazy about football. People, they wait for this moment, but this doesn't mean we are going to win the championship. That is the problem. ~ Pele

It's difficult to talk about Pele because I didn't see him. ~ Thierry Henry

Everyone talks about the forwards, the players when they are scoring goals. But sometimes I look for the complete player not just the players who score but those who can pass. ~ Pele

I think I've always had the shots. But in the past, I've suffered too many mental lapses. Now, I'm starting to get away from that and my mental discipline and commitment to the game are much better. I think I'm really taking a good look at the big picture. That's the difference between being around for the final or watching the final from my sofa at home. ~ Pele

I always think that I would have become an actor if I hadn't been a soccer player. ~ Pele

The head talks to the heart and the heart talks to the feet. ~ Pele

No doubt, I am earning more money with my endorsements than I ever earned playing soccer. ~ Pele

I am not Pele or Maradona ~ Robbie Savage

A team is not made up of isolated individuals. Always stay in the game. Don't be passive. Football is a team game. No one plays alone. Success depends on your whole team being a single unit. ~ Pele

His vision was just outstanding. If you think of him in the same way as Pele then you would come close. ~ Leonard Cohen

We're not great friends, but I admire him. If he thinks he's the best player of the century, that's his problem. ~ Pele

Brazil's always had great players, both at home and abroad, but we need to put all that talent together and mould a team out of it. ~ Pele

I have to trust something that gives me power; I have to believe in something, but in my career I have a lot of moments I cannot explain with God. ~ Pele

Always when I come to the field, I try to do my best for other people. ~ Pele

The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning. ~ Pele

I always had a philosophy which I got from my father. He used to say, 'Listen. God gave to you the gift to play football. This is your gift from God. If you take care of your health, if you are in good shape all the time, with your gift from God no one will stop you, but you must be prepared.' ~ Pele

Fella's a genius. Best ever by a distance in my life time. Never really saw Pele ... Souness, Gullit, Venables and now Rooney agree Messi is the best they have seen. He plays a game with which we are not familiar. ~ Gary Lineker

In 1962, my injury wasn't because of violence; I just kicked the ball and it happened. And that was OK because Brazil won; I didn't have any difficulty in accepting that. I still got a medal because I'd played two games. ~ Pele

Messi is the best player of all time. Better than Pele, better than Maradona and better than anyone else. ~ Adriano Galliani

Success isn't determined by how many times you win, but by how you play the week after you lose. ~ Pele

Over the years I've learnt to live with two persons in my heart. One is Edson, who has fun with his friends and family; the other is the football player Pele. I didn't want the name. 'Pele' sounds like baby-talk in Portuguese. ~ Pele

Sport is something that is very inspirational for young people. ~ Pele

Pele was the most complete player I've ever seen. ~ Bobby Moore

6. ANDRES INIESTA - SPAIN (No matter what they say six is better than seven) 5. DAVID BECKHAM - ENGLAND (High five!) 4. KAKA - BRAZIL (I'm number four on the list but number one in your heart) 3. DIEGO MARADONA - ARGENTINA (I'm the trifecta!) 2. LIONEL MESSI - ARGENTINA (Watch out I'm right behind you.) 1. PELE - BRAZIL (Knock knock, who's there? Best, Best who, Best Ever) ~ Alex Trost

When football stars disappear, so do the teams, and that is a very curious phenomenon. It is like in the theatre, in a play, where there is a great star. If the star is not well, the whole cast suffers. ~ Pele

To be a striker you need to be in good shape. ~ Pele

Brazil eats, sleeps and drinks football. It lives football! ~ Pele

I was really proud that I was named after Thomas Edison and wanted to be called Edson. I thought Pele sounded horrible. It was a rubbish name. Edson sounded so much more serious and important. ~ Pele

I think the kids always they look forward to be always the big stars. Not only football, any profession. They want to be the best, singer, they want to be the best political, only the stars. But I think sometime the life give you opportunity, and long to be a big star, but you don't need to be a big star, you need to be beautiful, excellent man. Human being. This is the first. ~ Pele

Yes, Ronaldinho is bigger than me. Exactly 4 centimeters. ~ Pele

I love people. I wanted to be with the people. I wanted to give something back what I get from football, because God gave everything to me. ~ Pele

Pele should go back to the museum. ~ Diego Maradona

I treat everybody the same. You know I love to be with people: the youngsters. ~ Pele

I was born to play football, just like Beethoven was born to write music and Michelangelo was born to paint. ~ Pele

I wanted to be a soccer player, and I became the best of the best, the number one, better than Maradona, better than Pele, and even better than Messi - but only at night, nighttime, during my dreams. When I wake up, I realized that I have wooden legs and that I'm doomed to be a writer. ~ Eduardo Galeano

People who say that only young people voted on the Internet, those who didn't see Pele play, forget that children are not orphans. There's always a father who buys the computer and perhaps influences their vote. I won the people's vote. ~ Diego Maradona

The World Cup is a very important way to measure the good players, and the great ones. It is a test of a great player. ~ Pele

Everybody knows my life. I won a lot of tournaments and scored more than 1,000 goals, won three World Cups but I could not play in Olympic Games. ~ Pele

The bicycle kick is not easy to do. I scored 1,283 goals, and only two or three were bicycle kicks. ~ Pele

I sometimes lie awake at night and wonder why I am still so popular and, to be honest, I don't know. ~ Pele

A penalty is a cowardly way to score. ~ Pele

There's Pele the man, and then Pele the player. And to play like Pele is to play like God. ~ Eusebio

Critics have always questioned whether players like Pele from the 50s could play today. Lionel Messi could play in the 1950s and the present day, as could Di Stefano, Pele, Maradona, Cruyff because they are all great players. Lionel Messi without question fits into that category. ~ Alex Ferguson

Pele really had everything - goalscoring ability, a great passer, good in the air, quick, he used both feet, almost the perfect footballer. Many words have been written about Pele but his record speaks for itself -more than 1,000 goals and three World Cup victories. He also played at a time when attacking players were not protected by referees as much as they are today. ~ Osvaldo Ardiles

I am constantly being asked about individuals. The only way to win is as a team. Football is not about one or two or three star players. ~ Pele

People argue between Pele or Maradona. Di Stéfano is the best, much more complete. ~ Pele

Pele is the greatest player in football history, and there would only be one Pele in the world. ~ Osvaldo Ardiles

Football is the only sport where you put people together, it doesn't matter if you are rich, or poor, or black, or white. It is one nation. This is the beauty of football. ~ Pele

Unless your kid is Pele Jr., they're not going to be able to feed themselves from soccer. If your kid knows how to play soccer, but not make dinner, you have done them a disservice. ~ Alton Brown

Edson is the person that supports Pele. Edson is the base. Pele just comes and adds the face. ~ Pele

I played futsal growing up in Baurd. In futsal you need to think quick and play quick so its easier for you when you move to normal football. ~ Pele

Brazil is a country I hold very dearly. I've got followers there who I've been interacting with for years, as well as fellow artists like Ivete Sangalo, and it also has huge figures like Pele. I'd love to go to that World Cup - I'm not sure in what capacity, but I'll definitely be there. I know that nobody wants to miss it, least of all me. ~ Shakira

That's great, tell him he's Pele and get him back on. ~ John Lambie

When you are young, you do a lot of stupid things. ~ Pele

Pele wasn't as gifted as George Best and I would definitely put George above Johan Cruyff because he had more heart, ~ Johnny Giles

I played for Santos at 16, and we had an excellent team, so it helped a lot. And then I played for Brazil at the Maracana against Argentina. So I get more experience. This was one year before the World Cup, and it made a lot of difference. ~ Pele

I don't think I'm a very good businessman. I act too much with my heart. ~ Pele

The best player ever? Pele. Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both great players with specific qualities, but Pele was better. ~ Osvaldo Ardiles

People always ask me: 'When is the new Pele going to be born?' Never. My father and mother have closed the factory. ~ Pele

You must respect people and work hard to be in shape. And I used to train very hard. When the others players went to the beach after training, I was there kicking the ball. ~ Pele

The biggest family in the world is football, because football has more associate - and FIFA, for example - has more associates than UNESCO. ~ Pele

When I was minister of sport in Brazil, I tried to bring in a law that would make the chairmen of clubs reveal their accounts like other businesses. It was turned down, but I think it is an important story that will make a good film. ~ Pele

Brazil, always they buy from the United States. The first who was sell to the United States was football. ~ Pele

When you play against dirty players or very tough players, it's easy to escape because you know what they're going to do. But when the player is tough but intelligent, it's much more difficult. ~ Pele

When you control the ball you control the score ~ Pele

When I was playing, they said soccer was a man's world and women should remain on the sidelines, all I can say is I'm glad I never had to go up against Mia Hamm ~ Pele

I want to do my best to make the people happy. I play with my heart for the sport. ~ Pele

I've come to accept that the life of a frontrunner is a hard one, that he will suffer more injuries than most men and that many of these injuries will not be accidental. ~ Pele

Love is more important than what we can take ... Please say with me three times-Love! Love! Love! ~ Pele

When I retired, at that time I had a lot of proposals to play in Europe, England, Italy, Spain, Mexico. But I said no, after 18 years I want to rest, because I want to retire. ~ Pele

It was with a homosexual, I was barely 14 years old. But let's be fair, I wasn't the only one who did it. He was a man in Bauru that all our team visited. ~ Pele

I think that France, Germany, Spain, Holland and England will join Brazil in the semi-finals. ~ Pele