Quotes from Pele

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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.

The more difficult the VICTORY, The Greater the Happiness in WINING

If you don't give education to people, it is easy to manipulate them.

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

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.

Considerable research on successful soccer players and their developmental history, affirms that a good percentage of them have spent time in isolation, working on soccer skills.

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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

At 17, I already had responsibility because I took care of my family, but in the football I was young; I wasn't experienced or the captain - I was just in the team.