Santos had already won titles before Pelé was signed, but his arrival at the club spawned a long and sensational winning streak which, in just over a decade, transformed what was then an average Brazilian club into one of the biggest names of the world. soccer.
Pelé arrived at Santos in 1956, wearing long pants for the first time in his life, accompanied by his father and the scout who discovered him.
The transformation has been swift for him and for his new club.
Santos had won the Campeonato Paulista before, but with Pelé in the squad, they embarked on a glorious streak of 10 more state titles and six Brazilian championships.
The bather also won two Libertadores, in 1962 and 1963, and in the same years he also won the Intercontinental Cup, a title that rewarded the winner of the duel between the best team in Europe and the best in South America.
In these spectacular 24 months, Santos played nine tournaments and won eight, only losing the 1962 Campeonato Paulista against Palmeiras, as their schedule was so busy that he had to play with the reserves in some matches.
PROVINCIAL CITY
Before Pele’s arrival, Santos was a mediocre club, they could hardly compete with the biggest Brazilian teams, let alone beat European giants such as Real Madrid, Benfica and AC Milan.
Coming from a provincial seaside town, the club was overshadowed in São Paulo by teams such as Corinthians, Palmeiras, Portuguesa and São Paulo.
In Rio de Janeiro, another great center of Brazilian football, big teams like Botafogo dominated, with Garrincha and Jairzinho at their side.
The cities of Rio and São Paulo had millions of inhabitants, while Santos was a small city of 265,000, which meant that the club had fewer fans and less money.
But, with Pelé on the pitch, Santos managed to overcome all expectations and adversities.
His visibility on the international stage, aided by Brazil’s three World Cup victories between 1958 and 1970, prompted clubs around the world to pay exorbitant sums to watch him play.
Every year, Santos criss-crossed the world, playing Sheffield and Shanghai, Barcelona and Benin, and Pele was always the star attraction. If he was injured or not thrown, the fee paid per appearance was reduced.
He was often forced to play when he wasn’t quite fit because the money they received was the only way the club could survive and make sure Pele got what he was worth.
Pele could have played for any of Europe’s top clubs – Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Paris St Germain were among those who bid fortunes for his talent – but he was happy at Santos, and the Brazilian leagues at the time were as competitive as those since other side of the Atlantic.
His influence was enormous, even though foreign audiences rarely saw him. Clubs around the world were named Santos in honor of him. The children were named after him. Greek Olympiakos were so proud of beating Santos that they included a reference to it in their club anthem. Real Madrid withdrew from a match because, Santos historians insist, they were afraid of being defeated.
And whoever saw Pelé play has never forgotten him.
“I was immediately mesmerized by this boy Pele,” said German director Werner Herzog after seeing him in Munich in 1960.
“Santos won 9-1. They scored back-to-back and what I saw was like magic, a little boy scoring one goal after another and doing things on the pitch that I never thought were possible. Pure, total magic. And that’s still with me.”
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Source: Terra
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
