Portrait of Brazilian soccer star Pelé dated December 1971 in Paris. Pele scored his 1000th goal 19 November 1969 at Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro playing for Santos against Vasco da Gama. Pelé, whose real name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, is widely held to be the best player in the game's history. He made his international debut at age 16, appeared in 1363 first-class games (1955-1977) and scored 1281 goals. National hero in Brazil, Pele is the only player to have won 3 World Cups (1958 in Sweden, 1962 in Chile, 1970 in Mexico). He was appointed sports minister in the Brazilian cabinet in December 1994. (Photo credit should read STAFF/AFP/Getty Images)
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